


Hot for Teacher

by ExactPomegranate



Category: Bleach
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Romance, Sex, Slow Romance, Teacher-Student Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:35:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 14
Words: 77,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27495067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExactPomegranate/pseuds/ExactPomegranate
Summary: Going home was supposed to be a chance for a fresh start, a new life. Instead what he got was a crazy midget and a whirlwind of fresh problems to stress over.
Relationships: Hitsugaya Toushirou/Kurosaki Karin, Kuchiki Rukia/Kurosaki Ichigo
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	1. Hey Stranger

Snow crunched underfoot as Ichigo made his way up the winding path, the heavy snowfall from the night before made his climb harder than it needed to be. He had to be cautious not to slip on a piece of hidden ice or the snow itself, and yet he persevered with cautious step after cautious step. Eyes scanning around him looking for potential hazards; it didn’t however stop him however from taking in the scenery around him.

Trees laden with so much snow their bare branches sagged under the weight, occasionally the howling wind was interrupted by the soft thud of a branch relieving itself of its load. It was grim, lonely, depressing, and yet peaceful, lovely, and if this wasn’t a graveyard an argument could be made for perhaps romantic.

As he continued to climb he pushed thoughts as far as they could from anything one would deem romantic, after his latest run of bad luck it was decided he had neither the time nor the inclination for romance. Instead he focused on the bitter cold of winter and cursing it with every fibre of his being.

Nearing the summit the trees thinned giving him a partially obscured view of the city below. When he was a child he had often wondered why his father had picked this plot for his mom, his father had told him that he wanted his mother to have the best view. Back then he didn’t understand his reasoning, now though, he understood a bit better.

“Hey mom” he greeted her stone. This had always been a bit difficult, he felt silly talking to a headstone, Yuzu and Karin never seemed to have a problem and his father was, well his father. “I’m sorry I haven’t visited in a while” he began “life, well it’s been a rollercoaster. Things seem to be finally getting better. I’ve got a new job as a teacher at my old high school and I start in a couple months, I know dad always wanted me to follow in his footsteps but I think I’ve finally found my calling.”

“The girls are about to start high school, dad’s been acting somewhere between overly proud and overly worried, mostly about them ending up as teenage mothers, it’s driving Karin mad to the point she’s even asked to move in to escape him. Honestly I would’ve taken his speeches on safe sex over waking up to him attacking me” he couldn’t help but find himself laughing a little at the memories, sure he hated it then, still hated it now in fact, but it had helped him with all the fights he’d gotten himself in over the years.

“They’re more like you than dad though so he should know he’s got nothing to worry about.” The wind howled around him as he stared at her stone, he had nothing more to say. With the cold beginning to work its way through his jacket he chose to say goodbye, leaving with a promise to come around often. 

The biting wind picked up as he ventured down the path forcing him to further zip up the already tight leather in an attempt to shield his neck from the cold while shoving his gloved hands into his pockets. Weirdly though the cold wasn’t bothering him the way it had during his assent, just as weird was the smile that found itself gracing his lips, strange as it was talking to his mother’s grave had left him, for the moment at least, with a sense of warmth within himself.

Thoroughly lost in his own musings he found himself being drawn to attention by a flash of colour permeating his vision. Normally he would’ve paid it no mind but it was followed shortly by another, with curiosity peaked he began looking around for its source and coming across flowers rolling softly atop the snow. As one came to rest against his foot he could see it was missing a few petals, likely it was that which drew him from his thoughts.

Besides a dash of snow they seemed untouched by the cold, most likely that meant they’d come from somewhere nearby and were probably recently left. Returning them probably wouldn’t take too much time from his day, though it wasn’t like he had other plans to begin with.

Heading off into the surrounding areas he looked for any trace of where the flowers belonged, it helped that he managed to come across a couple others leading him to a grave with an overturned vase still burdened with a sole flower that threatened to blow away like the others before. Kneeling down he placed the flowers back into the container and packed some snow around the base to keep it from tipping again.

Standing, he brushed the snow from his pants and began making his way back to the main path “excuse me” a soft voice called out. A small girl stood nearby clad in a long, snow white coat with a bright red scarf. In her hands were some flowers like the ones he’d just returned.

“What were you doing at my sister’s grave?” “I ugh, I found some flowers on the path and I wanted to return them, did they not belong to you?” “Who returns flowers?” The way she looked at him, like he’d grown a second head wasn’t the most thankful of looks. “I guess I do” he replied with a shrug.

“Look I just wanted to return the flowers that’s it, now if you’ll excuse me I’ll be on my way.” “Wait!” She shouted after him “I’m sorry, I just… there’s a lot going on” “it’s fine kid, I get it” “kid… KID!” She approached with the ferocity of a tiger, each step echoing through the trees and overpowering the wind.

“Who the hell do you think you are calling me a kid?” Her words were accentuated by a pale and delicate looking finger roughly poking his chest. There was something about her that made him push back “you don’t like kid. Pint-sized suits you, dwarf would also work” then it came to him “midget.”

The wind up wasn’t clear till too late and his poor shin was throbbing in pain “what the fuck midget?” Evidently he’d triggered her yet again and soon his ass was firmly planted in the snow. 

Her cackling at his misfortune was enough to make him just as mad as she’d been seconds ago; the mature option it was not but the snowball he sent her way did provide him with a high level of satisfaction as it connected with her face. Unbothered by the snow Ichigo lay back howling with laughter as the girl aggressively brushed away what remained of the projectile.

“Jackass” she cursed, stomping back to the stone and started arranging the flowers. “Do you have gloves?” Not a normal question to ask a stranger but it had to be fifteen below and she was working away without any sort of protection. “No” she responded, not taking eyes away from her current task.

Her skin was unnaturally pale, almost like the snow around them. No matter if she tried to or not there was no hiding the river of red slowly flowing through the cracks on the back of her hand.

“Oi midget” once again he earned her ire “the hell do you want, can’t you see I’m-” the words cut off when he sent gloves sailing through the air. “Take them” “no” her pushback was immediate. “Just take them, I can see the state of your hands from here” his reasoning was solid and any sane person would just thank him, course this was some crazy midget he was dealing with.

“I don’t need your charity” “oh for the love of” he groaned. Could the girl just take them, did this really have to be a fight. “It’s not charity, I just want to help” “that sounds an awful lot like charity to me.” He could feel the scowl growing by the second “keep them leave them I don’t care.” With his hands shoved firmly in his pants’ pockets and back to the tiny girl one would think that was the end of it; this girl seemed to defy every social convention.

One… then two; looking back the gloves lay on the ground and she was still locked in place after tossing the second one. An exasperated snort escaped him “see you around midget!”

Back on the path and he could still hear her cursing him. It was so dumb, fighting him over a pair of gloves like that and yet, he couldn’t stop the smile that had reformed, it had been kinda fun. 

When he finally returned home he heated a hand, wrapping it around a soothing cup of jasmine tea while the other held a good book in place, that was how he found himself the next day as well till he was interrupted by an urgent knocking on his door. “I’m coming” he grumbled as it failed to end “what?” He asked yanking open the door, clearly irritated by the incessant knocking.

“We need to talk” Uryu said as he took a step around him and into the apartment, while he would love to complain about how Uryu was behaving it was rather uncharacteristic of him. Shelving his snide comments for now Ichigo took a seat on his couch beside his friend and discarded book, the silence was palpable and there was a tension in the air that had existed only once before “you’re not here to confess to me are you?” the joke was meant to break the tension, it didn’t work “what the fuck are you talking about?”

“Nothing, now what brought you over here and had you banging on my door like a madman?” His friends looked towards a window before speaking “Orihime called, told me she got offered a job, at our school” “well shit that would do it” Ichigo said letting himself sink into the couch.

“Do you think she knows I’ll be there as well?” “Well, if she didn’t when she called me she does now, she’s probably going to call you too.” “You think so?” It had been a long time since they spoke, more or less that was his fault; she wanted him to stay and he wanted to be anywhere but by her side. 

“You two may have divorced but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t care about you” “she’s a much better person than I am” he mused “it’s not hard to be” “oh fuck off” Ichigo said feigning anger, though after a moment the two of them shared a laugh at the joke.

“You want a drink?” Ichigo asked “sure, I’m done marking for today” as he made his way to the fridge Uryu kept talking “you should go out and try to meet someone new” “are you sure you want a beer, cause talking about my love life is not how you get one” “Ichigo look, it’s been five years put yourself out there, despite your terrible personality women seem to like you.”

“Your skill at complimenting and insulting me at the same time is unparalleled, now can you please drop this?” Uryu sighed at him “Ichigo, she’s been on dates, she’s trying to move on.” “What makes you thinks I haven’t?” It was rare for him to catch his friend off guard, the look on Uryu’s faces said this was one of those times “there was a girl in America, then one when I got back.”

“Were they serious?” The line of question Uryu had entered was disconcerting “they lasted a while” “but were they serious?” His friend asked again “they meant something to me” was the best answer he could give. “Why do you care so much about my love life anyway, you never used to.” “Still don’t, I just don’t want to deal with you becoming a crusty old bitter man. You’re already annoying enough as it is.” 

“I think you’ve gone soft on me” Ichigo said with a snort “Ichigo I” but he cut Uryu off “I’ll call up Mizuiro and Keigo, he manages a club now doesn’t he?” “Yeah, feels like a far cry from when we were in high school, hard to believe that someone gave him responsibilities.” “Maybe he’s finally moved on from trying to convince us to spy on the girls locker room” both of them laughing softly at the memories of a youth that seemed so far gone.

“Why were we even friends with him?” Uryu asked while laughing “he was a good bass player, and an even better punching bag.” The pair continued reminiscing late into the evening, eventually Uryu had to leave and Ichigo was left alone thinking about what his friend had said.

The sun had long since set, his apartment now only lit by the soft yellow glow of the lone floor lamp beside his couch and the wisps of moonlight that came through the balcony door. “So… she’s been on dates” he said to himself as if just having the words leave his lips would make it more real to him. He’d expected her to after all, they would each have to move on at some point, and she’d have her pick from the lot, after all she was beautiful, sweet, funny, and caring; terrible cook though.

All those meals he’d pretended to like over the years they’d been together, guess that was going to be someone else’s job at some point, maybe she’d finally find someone who liked her cooking.

There was a pang of jealously that would linger longer than he wanted it to. Heeding Uryu’s advice he looked to his phone hesitating before finally deciding to pick it up and dial his friend “ICHIGO!” Keigo yelled over the line, this was probably a terrible idea.

The Next Day

Standing outside of a seedy looking club going by The Seireitei just made him feel dirty. “Is this seriously the place?” He asked Mizuiro “guess so” he answered shrugging his shoulders “should we even bother?” “Now now Ichigo you’ve come this far, besides Uryu made me promise to show you a good time and I intend to deliver” phrasing aside he was glad to have friends that cared this much about him, though Uryu would be given an earful later for inserting himself this much into his personal life.

Feeling like leaving wasn’t an option Ichigo decided to just go along with it, “it couldn’t be that bad right?” “That’s the Idea Ichigo” Mizuiro said slapping his back. It was a good thing he hadn’t eaten dinner yet because currently he was busy eating his own words. The place reeked of sweat and desperation, neon lights lined the walls and stage and were the only lights on, all that plus the machines that pumped out smoke at an alarming rate gave the place a dingy and disgusting feel.

“I feel like this was something we should’ve foreseen, it is Keigo after all” unlike himself Mizuiro didn’t seem to be fully disgusted by their surroundings “I’m not staying, let’s go find a bar” “fine by me” Mizuiro agreed “I’d rather not have to pay to hang out with a woman.”

“Guys!” Keigo yelled before they had the chance to leave “we’re going somewhere else” Keigo’s smile fell at his words “what why?” “Because this is a strip club” Keigo only looked at him like he’d grown a second head “um yeah, I thought you guys knew, I mean it’s me what other kind of club would I run, this does explain why you wanted to come here though.”

“You didn’t think that Ichigo wanting to come to a strip club was suspicious?” Mizuiro asked “honestly I thought he’d just finally stopped being so prudish” “fuck you” Ichigo half-heartedly cursed “look there’s a bar not too far down the street, you guys head over there and I’ll meet you when I’m done here okay” “sounds like a plan” Mizuiro agreed, Ichigo just nodded already heading for the door.

By the time Keigo joined them Mizuiro was already a couple beers in and Ichigo was on his third coffee, the pair locked deep in conversation, there was something about bars that always made him more talkative.

“What did I miss?” Keigo asked as he took a seat “Ichigo met a cute girl in the cemetery” Mizuiro answered before he could “WHAT!?” Keigo yelled “Ichigo you’re picking up girls at the cemetery, you’re the real pervert.” “Are you sure about that?” He asked leaning over the table and reaching for Keigo’s collar all while staring him dead in the eye “no, no I’m not, I’m the real pervert” Keigo fearfully back pedaled. Subtle insinuations of violence, that was the way to go.

“She’s cute though?” “I never said she was, I said she was short, rude, and ungrateful” he answered Keigo, who proceeded to turn to Mizuiro “he noticed more than one thing about this girl!” “Is it really that hard to believe” Ichigo asked his friends “YES!” The simultaneous response was enough to get him to question himself.

“Whatever, she was annoying, and it’s not like I’m going to see her again” he tried to be dismissive but his friends didn’t seem to want to let this go. “Not with that attitude” Keigo stated “you gotta go get that cutie!” Keigo yelled, slamming his hands down on the table; it didn’t go unnoticed to Ichigo that several of those at other tables gave the three of them terse glances.

“What are you expecting me to do just stalk this girl or hang out in the cemetery till she shows up again?” “No, but it’s not weird to routinely visit your mother” Mizuiro pointed out “I’m not using my mother as an excuse to try and pick up some annoying midget, now can we drop this and talk about something else please.”

**...**

The Previous Day

What kind of man just gives a stranger their gloves? That was the question she was currently asking herself. The orange haired stranger had long since left and yet his gloves still lay in the snow, now with a light covering of the soft white substance.

She looked at them, then at her hands. Good gloves weren’t cheap, and the last pair she’d had quickly fell apart. It would be a waste wouldn’t it, to let them stay here being revenged by the winter winds, polluting the ground with bits of fabric as they were inevitably torn apart. That was the lie she would tell herself. 

Swallowing her pride she slipped the discarded things onto her hands, they were more than a few sizes too big for herm but they didn’t feel like they’d slip off. The fabric inside seemed to cradle her hands providing her with plenty of comfort, somehow even after being in the snow for so long the residual heat from his hands helped to warm hers. It wasn’t long before feeling returned to her hands and she wasn’t worried they’d fall off on her.

Saying a quick goodbye to her sister she started down the same path the stranger had taken not so long ago; the snow had already covered up his tracks. She wished she could go straight home and make herself something warm, but obligations were obligations and she made her way to a nearby coffee shop where she was to meet Ran and Momo.

It was like a wall the way the smell of freshly brewed coffee hit her as she stepped into the shop. The soft murmur of customers clashed with the metallic rumble of coffee grinders working away; a general feeling of ease washed over her as she began searching for her friends

“Rukia, over here!” Rangiku’s voice cut through the sounds around her drawing her gaze to her friend who was frantically waving at her. She could feel eyes on her as she made her way to the booth her friends occupied “do you have to do that every time?” She asked Rangiku as she slid into the booth beside Momo, doing her best to find a comfortable spot on the torn cushion “yes, it’s my favourite way to annoy you” Rangiku answered smiling the whole time.

Rolling her eyes at Ran she pulled off her scarf and gloves “where did you get those?” Ran asked grabbing the gloves “these are really nice, leather and wool” she commented as she checked them out “they’re a bit big though and don’t match your outfit, at the very least you should’ve at least gotten a smaller pair.” “I didn’t buy them” Rukia told her snatching them back “this guy at the cemetery gave me his when he noticed I didn’t have any.”

By the looks on her friend’s faces she knew what was coming “was he handsome?” Momo asked surprising Rukia as Ran was usually the one to take a vested interest in these matters “god no! He had this wild orange hair, was freakishly tall, and just the ugliest scowl I’ve ever seen.” Much to her dismay her answer had the opposite effect she was hoping for. Both the girls looked to her probably expecting more details.

“Well, was he fat?” Rangiku’s obsessive need to know every detail of every man who entered her life was still old. “No, he seemed pretty fit” even if he was a jackass she had to hand it to the stranger, he did seem to take care of himself. “Probably could be handsome if he dropped the damn scowl.”

That little sentence, tiny, insignificant words; that were not meant to be heard; meaningless to her, a toss away thought. To her friends it was an open invitation to speculate. “He must be dreamy” Momo cooed. “How you get dreamy from that I’ll never know” Rukia said shaking her head at her friend’s antics.

“It’s strange for you to notice just one thing about a guy” Momo said raising a single finger “but you’ve told us his hair colour, that he’s fit, and that if he dropped the scowl he could be handsome.” Rangiku nodded in agreeance with their friend “seriously Rukia, Renji was cute, that tutor of yours Kaien was dreamy, you’ve even said that your brother is beautiful, but handsome. Rukia you’ve never called a man handsome before.” 

Rukia had to admit Rangiku’s logic was solid, except for one fact “I still haven’t” of course that didn’t matter to her friends who just idly sipped their drinks while giving her suggestive looks.

“Looks aside, I didn’t ask for his pity” her sour tone clearly stirring something within Momo “not everyone trying to help you is doing it out of pity, some people are just nice.” “You’re probably right” Rukia responded not fully believing her words but not wanting to be dismissive of her friend.

Soon the warmth and delightful smells of the coffee shop were left behind as they ventured out into the unforgiving cold “do you think the guys are already there?” Momo asked no one in particular “probably” Rangiku chose to answer “Renji’s been stepping up his game so he’ll want to be there extra early, wait till he hears about the cute guy, he’s going to blow his top.”

Rukia could only imagine the headache that would ensure if Rangiku brought up her strange encounter. “Please don’t say anything” she wasn’t asking, more or less pleading for mercy “I don’t need the added stress” “you’re going to have to deal with his feelings at some point you know” there was a time she’d though she had. However it shouldn’t have been much of a surprise to have to deal with it all over again.

“I know I know” she told Rangiku “just not today, please.” “Fine fine fine, but if he starts touching you again all bets are off” sighing in defeat Rukia agreed even though she knew this was all but guaranteeing herself a stress induced headache.

Ran was proven right as they reached her apartment, the boys were indeed early and not so patiently waiting by her door. “Aren’t you supposed to be here in half an hour?” Rukia asked the three of them, Ikkaku and Yumichika both jutted their thumbs towards Renji “what, I figured if we got here early we could get a head start on our work” “that’s not a bad idea” Rukia admitted causing Renji to smile, looking real proud of himself.

“However I did tell you that I’d be out till about now” she informed him while checking the time on her phone. “Had you paid attention you would’ve know that” Renji to his credit tried his best to laugh it off, rubbing the back of his neck and smiling sheepishly while apologizing.

Letting it go Rukia pulled her keys out of her coat and began to unlock her door, a shadow passed over her and the door; the presence of a body a mere inch or two behind her was hard to ignore. As it stood had it been anyone other than one of her friends she wouldn’t be taking such an intrusion to her personal space, though most of them knew to give her some breathing room, key word being most.

The hand that appeared on the small of her back and the warm breath on her neck, an action she once would’ve adored now only caused her to inwardly groaned knowing the consequences that came from his actions .

“Could you not?” It was said with more aggression than normal and she could only hope her premature action would deter Ran from causing an even greater ruckus “oh, ugh sorry.” His apology was half hearted, while she could no longer feel his breath the hand was still annoyingly there. Throwing open the door she stood to the side letting everyone enter before her and catching the smirk Rangiku flashed her way. For the second time that day she found herself rolling her eyes at her friend.

Her coat and scarf she hung on the coat rack by the door, casually throwing them over top of her friend’s, the gloves though they need to go somewhere she would remember them without fail, somewhere she’d see them every day that way she wouldn’t forget.

“What’re you doin’ over there?” Ikkaku asked. Without thought she flashed the gloves and answered “got to remember I have these” “what’s so special about those gloves that you need to remember you have them?” Renji asked her. She paused, trying to think of the best lie out of this situation “apparently a very handsome man gave them to her” well there was no point to that now as Ran answered for her.

“WHAT!?” Renji shouted jumping up from his seated position; an instant transition from calm to a fiery rage, this was more than what she expected from him and it showed in her eyes which were wide with shock. “Dude fucking relax” Ikkaku told Renji, grabbing him by the back of his shirt and pulling him down. Throwing the gloves on her counter she retreated to her room, partly because the books she needed were in there, partly because her store of Advil was there too.

Unceremoniously she plopped down between Rangiku and Momo, with her homework nestled neatly in her lap she quietly began working ignoring the silent stares coming from her friends. “Are you okay?” Momo finally asked her “I’m fine, just fine” she casually answered while working through a problem “Rukia I…” but a look from her shut Renji up real quick “I’m going to choose to ignore that little outburst of yours, but if you do something like that again I’ll be less than thrilled, got it?” “Yes mam” he responded, his face one of terror. “Good, now can we just study, exams are coming up soon.”

The Next Morning

The T.V. was playing Chappy the rabbit just a little too loud, her clothes the comfiest she owned a pair of white cotton boy shorts and an oversized ‘Nice Vibes’ T-shirt she’d found at a thrift store. It was beginning to show its age as it was covered in all manners of food stains and a big white spot on the back from a laundry accident involving some bleach, but still it remained at the top of her drawer, a constant wear.

In her lap rested a bowl of the sweetest cereal she could buy; no work, no plans, and thanks to all the help from her friends yesterday all her homework was done for once and today could be all about her. Though, just as she was settling in for a lazy morning the piercing sound of her phone’s ringtone startled her causing her to spill a bit of milk on herself.

Groaning through a mouthful of food she quickly swallowed before answering “moshi moshi” “ah Rukia, did I catch you at a bad time?” “No Asano-San I was just eating breakfast, is there something you need?” She nervously asked not wanting to lose her day off “there’s a free spot tonight and I know you’ve been wanting some extra hours.” Sighing in defeat she agreed “yeah I’ll take it, thank you for the call Asano-San” “no problem Rukia, I’ll see you at five” he said before hanging up. She really wanted this day off, defeated she did her best to enjoy the little time she did have to herself.


	2. Howling at Nothing

How long had it been since he’d seen Tatsuki, five years was a long time, people can change a lot in that time, he had, and yet they were able to pick up exactly where they’d left off, like those five years had simply been five days.

If things were still good between them than why was he so nervous standing on her doorstep? Whatever the reason he wasn’t given much time to dwell on it as the door was thrown open mere seconds after he knocked “finally” Tatsuki said playing up how annoyed she was “took you forever to get here” “nice to see you too” his sarcastic response didn’t even phase his friend.

“Yeah yeah yeah” she brushed him off “now get your ass in here.” He wasn’t even given the chance to walk in, her hand just grabbed his collar and pulled him inside.

Mildly perturbed was an excellent way to describe how he was feeling, she’d stretched out the collar of his shirt with rough and unnecessary actions. “What’s this about anyway?” The question was met with silence; following her through the house and down into the basement there was still silence.

Each step he took caused the stairs underneath him to creak ominously. While he wasn’t one to believe in superstition or anything of the sort it was almost like they were warning him of something up ahead, something he wouldn’t be fond of. “He’s here” Tatsuki announced leaving him with a sinking feeling in his gut.

“What are you putting me though now?” “Nothing you haven’t had to deal with before” that wasn’t frightening at all. Stepping foot into the well-lit room he was greeted with his name being shouted at an ear splitting level “ICHIGO!” “Every time” he muttered to himself knowing who the voice belonged to.

“This better not be what I think it is” with Mizuiro there as well there was really only one place this was going “oh it is” Tatsuki confirmed coming up behind him and slapping his back. “I’m out” his words were final, turning around to make his exit back up the rickety stairs, only stopping when Keigo called out to him “WAIT! I have something that might change your mind. Intrigued Ichigo watched as from behind himself Keigo pulled out an old and ratty tweed case and laid it on the ground.

That couldn’t be what he thought it was, there was no way, he’d sold the damn thing years ago! But the case looked so familiar, could it really be? In an almost cautious manner Ichigo made his way to it, even though he wanted nothing more than to be able to just walk away the sight of that case brought on a flood of happy, goofy memories and though there was a slim chance, with every step he took his hopes got higher and higher.

Down on one knee he began fumbling with the latches, rusted from disuse and moisture they were stuck pretty bad, eventually after breaking off two of them he was able to open it. Under a thick layer of dust sat the guitar he’d sold off about eight years ago, the cracks in the nitro lacquer, the buckle rash on the back, it was just how he remembered it.

“H-How” he managed out after a moment “we followed you” Keigo began explaining “after you pawned the guitar I went in and bought it simple as that, I wanted to give it to you when you were more secure and then… well it just took this long for me to get it back to you.” “I-I” he started but found himself at a loss for words. “You’re welcome Ichigo, now, what do you say?”

Taking a look at his friends all he could do was smile “I think we got him” Tatsuki said “I’m gonna need more than just a guitar guys, and this is going to need some serious work.” The body was covered in a layer of dust, the strings looked like they wanted to give him tetanus and the frets had certainly looked and felt better.

To anyone else his words would seem ungrateful but his friends however knew otherwise “it’s good to have you back” Tatsuki said once again slapping him on the back “I think it’s good to be back” he told her, a small smile making its way onto his lips while his eyes never wandered from the guitar.

Three Days Later

For the second time in a week Ichigo found himself walking up the winding path to his mother’s grave; unlike the first time the air around him was much calmer though it still lacked the sounds of nature.

Reaching her stone he kneeled and brushed the snow from its face before taking a seat, not caring about the consequences. For a while he found himself just sitting and staring at the stone, there wasn’t much for him to say. Truth be told he didn’t know why he was here, for some reason he found it to be calming, in just this one place it was like he could still feel her with him. 

It could have been minutes, it could have been an hour he was there; the silence his only companion.

Eventually he was roused from his thoughts by a polite cough. Looking over his shoulder he found the same petit raven haired girl he’d run into the last time he was here. “Come here often?” There was a twinge of light-heartedness at play in her voice, it wasn’t funny, hell Ichigo didn’t even know if it was supposed to be a joke or not and yet he found himself chuckling lightly at the silly question.

“Seriously?” She asked him doing her best to give him a disappointed look, her voice though gave away how she truly felt as it carried a playful tone to it, shrugging his shoulders in response Ichigo stood and dusted the snow from his pants.

“I didn’t expect to see you so soon… well ever actually. You don’t seem to like me too much” his assessment was met with an approving nod.

He always enjoyed silence, but right here right now, with her, it just felt wrong. In a desperate attempt to rid himself of the weird feeling he did something rare… he made a joke. “Do you just hang out in cemeteries or have you been following me?” It was a playful jab, one she responded too “I was visiting my sister jerk, your hair was too loud for me to ignore when you walked by. “Do I look that desperate for company that I’d seek out such an irritating stranger?”

Maybe those words were meant to cut but he couldn’t help the laugh that came out.

The stare she gave him could’ve scared away puppies; strange as it was, he found it quite endearing. She was trying so hard to be intimidating, and to others perhaps she was but honestly the glare was kind of adorable.

“Well if you didn’t come for my company, what are you here for?” “Isn’t it obvious, I just wanted to return these” she told him pulling off the gloves he’d given her. “Didn’t I tell you to keep those?” “And I told you before, I don’t need nor want your charity.” A cocky smirk played at his lips as he pulled his hands from his pockets “I really don’t need two sets though.”

Clearly he had succeeded in riling her up when he hadn’t meant to. “I can’t accept this” her words were blunt and her hands trembled, whether from the cold or barely contained rage he couldn’t be sure. “Just say thank you and take them” he’d won this battle the first time, she seemed intent on winning the war. “I don’t want your handout” was repetition the only thing this girl knew “don’t think of it as a handout.”

“What am I supposed to think of them then?” His head could only shake at her question “a gift, whatever makes you let go of that damn pride and gets you out of my hair.” He hadn’t meant those words, this was actually kinda fun.

“I can’t just take them” her denial this time was different, less forceful, more thoughtful. “A coffee then” Ichigo purposed. “But they’re-” “worth more a lot more” he finished, a move that really seemed to irk her. “To someone maybe, but right now I’m the seller and that’s what they’re worth to me.”

God was he really sort of asking out a girl he’d met at a cemetery, was he a terrible person? Her age was questionable and currently they were in a cemetery, in front of his mother’s grave no less, it was certainly up there for one of the strangest things he’d ever done. There was just no helping it though, there was just something about her.

“Calling me a kid one second, you really are a pervert.” He really was wasn’t he? “Do you want the gloves or not?” For a second it looked like she’d turn down his offer, her arm was still outstretched, slowly it was withdrawn and the offending garment was pressed tightly to her chest. “No funny business” there it was, finally some give.

“Please I’m not desperate midget” growling in frustration she took steps toward him and instantly he wished for shin guards. “It’s Rukia” never had he heard two words put under so much stress “if we’re doing the whole names thing, Ichigo” the hand that was offered to her was left wanting; there was however a glimmer of mischief in her eyes.

“Strawberry” the word left her mouth and he knew, it was a mistake to tell her “it actually means he who protects” Ichigo tried to clarify, he wasn’t going to get anywhere if her smile was anything to go by. “Sure it does berry boy, now come on, I owe you coffee don’t I.” She was too happy, this was a huge mistake. Still he followed her down the cemetery’s winding path. 

**…**

Did this count as a date? No, she was just repaying him back for the gloves that’s all this was. If that was the case why then did she feel so nervous when his eyes landed on her? They were there watching her as she ordered, now those same amber orbs were following her as she crossed the linoleum floor to the booth he resided. 

While his looked to her, hers look anywhere but him; she’d never noticed it before but there was quite a funky pattern on the wallpaper. 

“Can’t say someone’s ever chosen wallpaper over me before” had it been too much to hope this would have just been a quiet affair. “Congratulations on finally forcing someone to hang out with you.” “I’m sure with an attitude like that this is a high point for you too.” 

She was expecting to find that same disgusting scowl, or just nothing. But when she finally chanced a look the corners of his lips were tugging slightly up. It was… something else.

So he could be a little handsome when he wanted to, so what. She wasn’t going to sit here and let herself be taken in by something that barely constituted a smile.

Perhaps it was time she acted a bit more serious. “What kind of job allows you the luxury of having coffee with me on a Wednesday afternoon?” It was after four but from her experience company men don’t usually get out this early. Sheepishly he rubbed the back of his head “ugh, well currently I don’t technically work” an eyebrow raise in curiosity had him continuing his explanation.

“I do have a job” he was quick to affirm “it’s just that I have to wait two months to actually start working, staff are being shuffled and they’re binging me in once it’s all done, till then I get paid to do nothing” “so till then you’re a mooch?” Her tease had his lips curling up into a smirk “I guess you could say that” he replied.

“Living off the backs of a companies’ hardworking men and women, that sounds like a real struggle how do you do it?” That smirk of his spread and morphed into a genuine, one hundred percent cocky smile.

“Actually it’s a public position; technically I’m living off of everyone… even you” “even me” she repeated, a cocky smile of her own competing with his “and here I thought I was just a kid.” Ichigo just shrugged his shoulders at her retort “you may be rude and difficult, but you’re proud. I don’t think you’d be the type to lie.”

It shouldn’t be the case, he’s just insulted her and yet there was a heat in her cheeks “Well just so you know berry boy, I don’t date mooches.” Why those words slipped out she didn’t know. It would be easy to pretend it was an offhand comment and try to carry on, but his posture changed.

He looked more invested leaning further over the table, and there was something in those amber pools that spelt danger for her. She kinda liked it.

“So this is a date then?”

The world could’ve collapsed around them and she wouldn’t have noticed. He couldn’t be serious… could he? That crazy question stirred up a whirlwind of feelings within her. “That’s-that’s not what I meant” she eventually stuttered out, trying to clarify her previous statement. Too late, she was liking the way he was looking at her too much.

“Too good for me now?” “Now? I was always out of your league” her comeback was instinctual; it scared her just how natural the exchange was.

Silence enveloped them like a warm blanket; idly sipping their drinks and daring the other to make the move. It was fun, it was easy, god why’d it have to be so easy?

Could this not have happened later; one more year and she could be a university student, hell maybe just a have a full time job that didn’t require flaunting her half naked body to a room of strangers.

“You know, I wouldn’t mind doing this again.”

There weren’t many options afforded to her besides sinking back into the bench’s hard vinyl. Opposed to the idea, no; the embarrassment and eventual heartbreak that came with it, yes.

There wasn’t many options she was left with, heavily she took her gloves from the table. Sliding one foot from the booth Ichigo quickly tried to salvage the situation, but his words kept falling on deaf ears. It was with a great haste Rukia left the small coffee shop, this was often the time where the dashing love interest would chase after his reluctant love, but life was rarely like the shoujo manga she often found herself lost in; a quick glance over her shoulder was proof enough. 

Three Days Later

Coming off the stage Rukia sat down in front of one of the many mirrors, took one of the many pallets of makeup and set to work reapplying what had washed off with sweat and fixing what had smeared.

Though busy she didn’t fail to notice the reflection of one of her manager’s trying to quietly sneak out the back. “Where are you headed Asano-San?” It was quite comical the way he stumbled at the sound of her voice, nearly loosing grip on the sizeable case he was carrying. “Ah Rukia-Chan” lifting his shaky arm he showed her the large rectangular case “got a gig tonight; don’t worry though Chizuru is still here, just make sure she doesn’t get too friendly, you know how she is.”

“You play in a band?” She asked while carefully applying mascara “yeah, me and a few old friends from high school” he perked up at her interest “you’ve never talked about it before” Keigo quickly responded to her observation “yeah well we only just reformed, tonight’s our first show in eight years” “oh, good luck then!” “Thanks, we’re gonna need it” and with that he was headed out the back, albeit with a certain bounce he’d lacked before. 

An hour later and she was busy shoving a few things into her bag; more than thankful to leave this debauchery behind her for another night. The crisp night air sent shivers down her spine; one step out and she was already bombarded by snow. Tired legs did their best to carry her through the deep layers, the only victory she was allowed was a verbal one as string of nasty remarks damning the weather left her mouth.

The normal love she held for winter was forgotten; right now it was just an inconvenience that needed to be concurred. 

Attention was drawn to her phone, its soft buzzing interrupting the pity party she was currently “really?” She asked the air, with a groan of frustration she changed her route and headed down the street stopping outside of a seedy looking bar.

The inside smelt like stale beer and cigarettes; the hardwood floors creaked under each step. The people were rowdy and the music enjoyable; a far cry from what she was used to, it was something she could even appreciate; just not now.

For now she just wanted to find her drunken friend then get the hell out of there. In a crowd filled with men and women all sporting black hair you might think Rangiku would stand out with her long auburn hair, you would be wrong.

Jostled with every step, the bustling crowd was driving her insane

Through the haze and many voices “Rukia!” Rangiku was able to cut through like always. “you’re not drunk” the statement was fuelled by anger “you’re right and I’m sorry but I needed you here” “Ran I just want to go home” she complained “Come on Rukia, the only time we get to hang out anymore is when we’re all studying. It’s always just work and school now; you need cut loose and have a little fun.”

Easier said than done, it did become a lot easier when Ran offered to pay for her drinks, course there was still one small problem “I’m going to get carded.” She knew nothing would stop Rangiku Matsumoto in the pursuit of a good time, or a bad decision; usually the two would coincide. What Rukia didn’t know was that nothing would stop her from bringing her friends’ into it.

Out of her purse came a card that Rukia begrudgingly accepted “how did you get this?!” “Remember that time you lost your student card?” The connection didn’t take Rukia very long to make; she should be mad at her friend, having to buy another one sucked, but this did have its advantages. More importantly she could maybe milk this situation.

“You’re buying my drinks” with how forcefully she was being dragged to the bar it appeared Rangiku had no qualms with her condition.

A few raised eyebrows later and she was at a table sipping on a glass of Chardonnay much to Rangiku’s constant reminders that they were in fact in a dive bar; didn’t matter to Rukia, she could still enjoy the finer things no matter the situation.

The conversation that grew between them was uninspired to say the least. Rangiku’s mind was elsewhere, always looking behind her towards the stage and giving short, boring answers. There was something at play here but with her stature she couldn’t exactly see what her friend was looking at.

As the music faded away and the band geared up for the next song her friend surprised her with a question she was not prepared for “you want to go dance?” “God no” she was quick to respond “Ran I’ve been dancing all night, what makes you think I want to dance when I’m trying to relax?” Her rebuttal proved ineffective as Rangiku just kept pushing “that’s dancing for work, this would be dancing for fun, they’re completely different.”

_Some are waving it around Someone carried me home One was never noticed sleeping on the floor But I know we were there_

The many conversations happening around her fell to a quiet whisper as the sound of the band took hold. She didn’t know much music beyond the classical Byakuya often played, and the slop she frequently danced to. This was a different beast entirely, it was loud and boisterous like the club’s music, but held a more refined feeling to it.

A foot had taken to tapping along with the beat and soon she was allowing Rangiku to drag her to the front of the stage, joining a small group who had taken to dancing.

It took a minute to find her footing, none of the styles of dance she knew worked with the beat. Those around her were no help either, some were shaking back and forth with the beat while couples held each other close and shuffled along. In the end she could only go with the flow. Hands were up in the air as she slowly bopped around; shaking her money-maker for herself this time.

A flash of orange cut through her world and put an end to the dancing. Steadily turning to face the stage she made contact with a pair of burning amber eyes.

Hair shone in the meagre stage lights, slick with sweat like dew soaked autumn leaves in the morning sun. It felt impossible to look away, so she didn’t.

On the floor right now, people dancing all around her she could only stare at him, like they were the only two in here. His eyes didn’t waver from hers; even as he sung they were boring into hers. Every word, every syllable that came out of his mouth, it was almost as if it were for her. 

_Danced until we flat out falling into bed Said I won’t let you go_

“You have excellent taste” Rangiku said sliding up beside her. This is why she was here, this is why Rangiku lied; how many guys had fucking orange hair!

“He seems to like you too” “Ran” sadness and anger were intermixed into her voice. “Do you know why I haven’t gone on a date, flirted with guys, or found a boyfriend. It’s because no one wants to date a stripper! They don’t want their girlfriend taking her clothes off for strangers, and you know what I can’t exactly blame them because quite frankly I don’t want to!”

For once Rangiku remained quiet; it was a sad victory. “I’ll call us a cab” She said as they made their way towards the door. Rukia couldn’t help the small pang of guilt; after all Ran had only been trying to help in her own way.

“Let’s grab one more drink before we head out” perhaps she’d come to regret those words, but at the moment the smile that graced her friend’s lips was enough to convince her it was a good idea.

**…**

There she was again, barely fifteen feet from him and swaying oh so enticingly as he played; so close yet so far away.

It was like some dumb romance novel the way she stopped, turned and stared deep into his eyes. Not that you’d hear any complaints from him; those violet orbs of hers had somehow managed to occupy his mind for the past few days; no matter what he did to take his mind off things there they were, slowly worming their way back in. Along with the girl they were attached to of course.

The song came to a close and he was shuffling off the stage as Rukia was joined by another very buxom, auburn haired woman. He felt sorry for the woman, Keigo seemed very interested.

The cold and snow didn’t make for the greatest load up, in a small dimly lit alley they had to be very careful as they placed their gear in the back of Tatsuki’s car. Now was not the time for distractions, meaning this was precisely the time he was going to be asked about Rukia. 

“So… who’s the girl?” He wasn’t surprised by the question, he’d been very obviously staring at her, what was a bit alarming was the asker. He couldn’t just shut Tatsuki up with his fist now could he; there was a chance she would win.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about” ah yes playing innocent, the one move he always tried, and the one that always failed when it came to her. “Please you were acting like Keigo. I haven’t seen you like that since first year when you had that cute rivalry with Uryu.”

“She’s nobody” his bitter tone and ugly scowl would drive away the bravest of gang members, and once again it was something that failed to work on his oldest friend. “Give me your guitar, and get your ass back in that bar.”

Protesting didn’t appear to be an option with how Tatsuki ripped the case from his grip and forcefully shoved him to the door. Turning back would just mean facing her wrath and with the only exit being mostly blocked by her car it seemed Tatsuki was getting what she wanted; not without a significant amount of grumbling on his part however.

Had he not drove here a little liquid courage might just have been what the doctor ordered; though seeing her again while under its effects probably wasn’t the best idea anyhow.

Finding Rukia in the throng of patrons proved a greater challenge than anticipated; her short stature wasn’t quite the boon he thought it’d be, someone that short should’ve stuck out… stuck out! That was it; he was looking for the wrong girl. His eyes scoured the crowd for her friend’s exotic hair, and found it at the bar. 

Each step was an exercise in commitment; internally he was screaming, wondering just what he was doing approaching this girl. But there was a whisper in his heart, one just loud enough to help him see this through.

**…**

The eyes wide look Rangiku suddenly adopted told her something wasn’t right “coffee, black.” She recognized the husky voice behind her, it sent unappreciated shivers down her spine.

Right now when she needed Rangiku for support she found her friend engrossed with the ring of water her glass had left behind on the bar’s scarred wood. Without Ran’s help she was left with two options, ignore him and hoped he went away, or muster up every ounce of strength and tell him to shove it.

Neither were particularly attractive but in the end Rukia wasn’t going to allow herself to cower. Throwing her wine back made her feel more prepared than she actually was; the stool squeaked horribly as she turned to face him.

She had expected to be face to face with Ichigo but instead found him hunched over the bar, nursing the cup of coffee he’d just ordered. One hand was all mixed up in his hair, supporting his head while the other occasionally brought the mug to his lips. He didn’t seem to be paying her any mind, in fact he seemed to be focused on anything that wasn’t her.

“You know at some point you’re going to have to stop staring at me.”

Did he seriously have the gall to insinuate she was the one making things weird? “Excuse me, how am I supposed to act? You’re constantly popping into my life.” It was impossible not to notice the upward twitch of his lips “if I remember correctly I only ran into you once, the other times you found me.”

Just because what he said true didn’t give him a pass from her wrath. “You’re still making my life more complicated.” He snorted… he just snorted at her, how dare he! “Complicated, all I wanted was a cup of coffee; how is that complicated?”

“It… it just is, okay” her response only provoked him “there’s something you’re not telling me, isn’t there?” “Well of course there is, do you really think I’d spill my secrets to a stranger?”

“Giriko” Ichigo called to the bar keep “refill her glass, it’s on me.”

“What do you think you’re doing?” She wasn’t going to turn down the extra wine, it would help deal with the headache he was sure to bring. This would have to be the last glass though; his motivations were still unclear.

“You called me a stranger, in my experience there’s no better way to get to know someone than telling stories over a shared drink.” “A shared drink?” Her eyes questioned him about as much as her words “I don’t drink and drive” clearly, he noted where her eyes landed “it’s irresponsible.”

There was a sadness in his voice that wasn’t lost on her; she wanted to know why, but that could maybe, a very strong maybe, be a question for later.

“So you play in bars, guess that means you have a job.” Getting the hint he smiled at her words “guess I do, after all who wants to date a mooch” “I never said anything about a date berry boy, if you want one you’re going to have to impress me.” Her teasing didn’t seem to be lost on him, laughing at her demand and lightening the heavy mood that had settled on them.

**…**

Fuck fuck FUCK! He hadn’t expected to actually get this far. The plan had been to go in, shoot his shot and be turned down. Had he wanted to, no, but she had literally run away from him before, what else was he supposed to expect.

“Shouldn’t you be trying to impress me?” “Shouldn’t you be running away?”

It was too late to take back his words; she looked like she wanted to leave, and he really couldn’t blame her.

“I’ll leave” her threat probably didn’t have the impact she was hoping for; his confidence was only renewed. “Does that mean you’re intending to stay this time, because quite frankly if you pull the same stunt like before I just might have to chase you; it’s cold though and I’d rather not.”

With her eyes like saucers, he watched amused as Rukia stumbled over her words and eventually just settle on silence.

“Sorry if I was out of line that day” the apology broke the silence and again he could tell he’d caught her off guard, another win. 

“You weren’t” she admitted; with a sigh she looked to him. If he were to hazard a guess she was looking for some tell-tale sign he was playing her. She wasn’t going to find it.

“Look can we just forget about it?”

“I’d rather not, up until the end it was pretty fun.”

**…**

She wondered; did he have a smirk for every occasion? It looked perfected; a dab of cockiness mixed with something akin to a look of playful confidence. It drew her in and made her want to talk; but she would not give in to such wants so easily.

“Come on berry boy, impress me” the genuine excitement laced within those words surprised even herself.

With a single twitch a self-satisfied look appeared on his face, cute and handsome weren’t the right words for it. Sexy perhaps; that thought was soon banished from her mind; it only made her feel like Rangiku and was not something she liked. 

“Well I guess if I was trying to impress you I’d tell you all about my stint as a songwriter in Nashville, I topped charts, was on the cover of tabloid magazines and played to adoring fans, I lived the rock star fantasy.” “I’ll admit that sounds rather impressive” she conceded; a smirk to rival his own slowly making its way across her lips.

“It would probably be a lot more impressive to someone who understands the significance of what you just told me.” He looked to her, completely dumbfounded “classical was the only music allowed in my brother’s house; up until now the only experience I’ve had with other genres was a live performance at a fashion show, and a very repetitive playlist at work” she elaborated.

“You’re stories would be better served on another girl” his eyes narrowed, as if daring her to run away again. “If you’d rather stay here though, I wouldn’t mind listening.” “You’re going to regret saying that.” She leant closer, propping her chin upon the palm of her hand. “Something tells me I won’t” His cheeks turned a rosy red and those amber pools of his pulled away from hers; likely trying to compose himself. 

There was something she realised listening to the various stories he told about his time as a songwriter, he’d had experiences most could only dream of and yet the way he told them made it sound like a humbling experience. He seemed elated to share his experiences and immerse her in all of them, that and he looked just a bit cute talking about something he was so obviously passionate about.

“Why’d you leave?” She asked interrupting him, she hadn’t meant to the question just came out without thought “you just talk about it so fondly.” A soft and sad smile paired well with wistful eyes, it was a haggard look only the old seemed capable of. 

“I thought I’d miss it when I left, but I don’t” he began “I was in a dark place when I wrote most of my songs and playing them every night started to feel like torture. Couple that with money and fame and it’s just a recipe for disaster. I left because I didn’t think I’d last much longer.”

Reaching out to him she placed her hand in the palm of his, unsure of what to say after that. His hand slowly encased hers as if scared she would pull away from him. Their gazes met again, his amber eyes looked hardened by all they had seen and yet there was gentleness to them that as he looked into hers had her heart beating a mile a minute.

They sat there for a while and at her behest Ichigo continued his stories; their hands only separating when the bartender informed them they were closing. Both were bewildered at the time that had slipped by them “do you have a ride?” He asked as they stepped out into the cold “no” she answered pulling the zipper on her coat up further to fight off the cold.

“Would you like one?” He asked pulling a set of keys from his pocket “I’ll be fine” she assured him “you don’t have to worry about me” pressing a button on a small fab the engine of a red sports car roared to life. “It’s got heated leather seats” he told her, a cocky smirk plastered on his face. She had to admit it sounded a hell of a lot better than freezing her ass off walking home, so she relented “no funny business” she told him as they walked towards his car “wouldn’t dream of it” came his snarky reply.

It felt awkward sitting beside him as they zipped through the empty streets, the only words shared between them were the directions she gave at the start, since then nothing, though, judging by the serious look on his face and how laser focused he was on the road this might be what he preferred.

As they pulled into parking lot for her apartment he shut off the engine and began unbuckling along with her “what are you doing?” She asked “I was gonna walk you the rest of the way” “why?” Her brow now raised “I just wanted to make sure you got home safely” heat rose to her cheeks, had she not spent so long talking to him she might’ve considered dashing from his car as fast as her legs could carry her.

“You’re sweet Ichigo” she told him; leaning over to his side of the car she punctuated her words by placing her lips softly against his cheek “I’ll be fine though” she said opening the car door, ready to step into the cool night air and only stopped by his hand grasping hers “I want to see you again.” There were butterflies in her stomach and a goofy smile on her face, which was probably a deep shade of red by now, with her hand outstretched the only word she managed out was “phone.” Laughter filled his car as she watched him frantically fumble around looking for what she’d requested “here” he said handing it to her, a dusting of red adorning his cheeks.

Giving it back to him with her newly added number she quickly made her exit, not wanting to risk letting on to how nervous and excited she was by such a small, simple action. Reaching the threshold of her apartment building she spared a glance back at Ichigo, his eyes were firmly set on her, watching, waiting for her to be safely inside. Even as she slept that night, that goofy smile that had crept onto her in his car didn’t leave her. 


	3. Mainstreet

The neon lights, fake smoke, the smell of sweat and desperation, while it never made her feel good she never felt particularly bad either though, tonight all they did was suffocate her. Her breathing felt heavier and legs weaker whenever she stepped out onto that stage, afraid there would be a stock of orange hair waiting for her, the peace that had accompanied her those few nights ago had retreated and in its place a crippling fear.

Heavy arms pushed aside the plush pink curtains that kept prying eyes out of the back room; in a strange twist she found the manager leaning against the wall opposite to where she’d just entered, as if he was waiting for her. “You’re going to have to tell him” he refused to look her in the eye, content on letting them rest on his feet.

The warm yellow glow of the lights around them might’ve felt homely in a different setting, but for now they only illuminated the ashen brick walls and racks of skimpy clothing serving as a reminder of where and who she was. “What… how?” So basic and yet these two words were able to convey everything. Though she commanded her legs to move they refused leaving her frozen in spot as he continued “Ichigo is brash and hard headed but loyal to a fault; I don’t want to see either of you get hurt.”

“Please… don’t say anything to him till I get a chance” “don’t worry about that” he said approaching her “he might not be thrilled to find out about this, but he’s always cared more about character.” Like the fear and trepidation from moments ago relief washed through her, her limbs didn’t feel quite so heavy anymore; why? Why could a man she’d spent only a few hours with… why could he affect her like this?

“Also, you really need break your habit of just up and leaving people, Rangiku might’ve ended up fine but I really don’t want to deal with a mopey Ichigo again” a nervous laugh escaped her “sorry about that” “just don’t do it again” he told her with a grin as he made his way to the back office.

She settled in a nearby chair, taking the moment to rest her aching feet; the hard plastic feeling like heaven.

Heavy eyelids mad it a chore to not drift off right there; school tomorrow was going to be a mess if she was already this tired, hopefully there’d be enough tips tonight she could justify running to a coffee shop at lunch. Ran and Momo could join her and they could escape the boys for a little bit, thinking about her friends a sudden realization dawned on her… hadn’t Keigo mention Rangiku?

How did he know her? Better yet how would he know she’d accidently abandoned her friend? Now that she thought of it Ran hadn’t been upset with her… they couldn’t have met, could they? Now left alone in the dressing room she stewed on the possibility that her boss and her best friend had probably met and had probably talked, things couldn’t get much worse than that.

**…**

Why couldn’t Keigo manage a regular club, that way he wouldn’t have to feel like a damn degenerate just to drop something off, next time Keigo forgets his wallet he can get it himself. Furthermore, he was the one who had brought it to his friend’s attention after he’d found it on his coffee table, so why would Keigo ask Tatsuki to bring it to him?

Whatever the man’s crazy reasoning may be Ichigo found himself shooting a text before begrudgingly heading into the seedy club. Just as before the neon lights and smoke were overwhelming and it was packed with a surprising amount of business men… and a couple women it seemed. 

Ichigo kept his head down and eyes glued to his phone do his best to block out everything around him as he waited for Keigo to show. “Sir, would you like a dance?” Tearing his eyes away from his phone screen and to the short, half naked girl with sandy blonde hair in front of him “I’m good thanks, I’m friends with Keigo, he left his wallet at my house I’m just returning it” he told the girl “this isn’t really my scene” he said perhaps a bit too defensively, she didn’t seem to mind though.

“You must be Ichigo, Asano-San’s mentioned you a couple times” his face must have reflected the horror he was feeling as the girl was quick to add “only how you would never be caught dead in here.” “Yup” he awkwardly agreed with the girl “hey, you wouldn’t happen to have seen him would you, I’m kinda in a hurry” “oh… right he should be in the office, I’ll go get him for you” “no need Kiyone, you can head back to work I can take it from here” for once in his life Ichigo was thankful for the sudden appearance of his perverted friend.

“Hey Ichigo, what’re you doing here?” Keigo sounded somewhere between scared and anxious and he was looking anywhere other than at him “I’m returning your wallet… are you okay?” Ichigo asked, Keigo had always been on the weird side, but it was a perverted sort of weird never once had he acted like this.

“Yeah, I’m fine” “is someone robbing you or something, you’re acting strange, you usually scream my name when you see me so what gives?” With a sigh Keigo began talking “look there’s just-” whatever he was going to say ended up drowned out by an overly enthusiastic D.J. announcing the next dancer. Ichigo couldn’t help but cringe at just how excited the man was, Keigo though, he took off like a bat out of hell the moment the word ‘petit’ was uttered.

To his credit Ichigo wanted to look away. As the girl stepped onto the stage with a confident swagger dressed in the most revealing purple lingerie he’d seen, well, enraptured was too weak of a word. Guided by some unknown force and a raging desire for more he slipped through the crowd drawing nearer to the stage. It was like magic the way the smoke seemed to part just for her; with movements so fluid and charged with a raw sexuality indicative of her work. Raven tresses highlighted creamy, marble white skin as flawless as the stone it emulated. 

All around him patrons hooted and hollered while throwing their money on the stage, but there was something one of them said to him while unwelcomingly patting him on the back “lucky bastard, I’ve been trying to get her to notice me for months.”

Looking up there was a familiar face obscured only slightly by a purple lace mask “Rukia” he whispered to himself. As he came to the realization at just who was on stage she began taking her leave, one shaky backwards step at a time; and much to the disappointment of the crowd around him “fuck” he cursed pushing his way through the crowd. He needed to find her, he needed to talk to her, to tell her… to tell her what? What could he say, that he was fine with this, that this didn’t change how he saw her, because it did.

“ICHIGO!” Too lost in thought he didn’t notice till too late as Keigo barrelled into him taking them both to the ground. While he groaned in pain Keigo was somewhere between proud and worried “that’s never happened before” Keigo observed “I mean to you, you used to do this to me all the time” “can you get off me” Ichigo groaned out, rubbing a burgeoning lump on his forehead.

“Not until you tell me why Rukia-chan just left” “what?” He weakly asked “did you do something?” “No I” he sighed “we made eye contact and then… and then she just kinda backed off the stage, now can you get off me if you haven’t noticed we’re attracting a crowd.” Throwing Keigo off of himself he started towards the entrance of this godforsaken club; “fuck” he growled slamming his car door, time, he needed time to think about what this meant, how he felt, why did things never go his way?

Two Days Later

Staring down at his phone Ichigo wondered just what he should say, constantly typing, deleting, then coming up with something different… it had been like this since he found out and it needed to stop. It was consuming him, what she thought of him, what she thought he thought of her; he tossed and turned barley getting any sleep, why did he care so damn much?

Maybe it was the lack of sleep, maybe he was just an idiot but right now, after two days the idea of sending a well-crafted text didn’t cut it anymore; all out of good ideas he pocketed his keys and headed down to the underground garage.

“This is a terrible idea” he mumbled to himself stepping out of his car and looking up at her building, how would he get in, was she even there? He could send her a text but she could easily ignore that, clearly thinking things through was not his strong suit, would he let this deter him though? He decided not heading for her apartment, maybe he could somehow convince her to let him up. _This is dumb, so dumb_ he repeated in his head like a mantra while looking for her number on the registry.

“Ichigo” hearing his name he turned to the speaker, her buxom friend stared at him intently, surely judging his motivations “three fifty-two, whatever you’re here for, just be nice about it.” Nodding in understanding he took off up the stairs taking two at a time till he reached her floor. Finding the door he’d been directed to, raising his fist and hesitating for a moment before steeling his nerves and knocking. As the door knob began to turn he took a deep breath, there was no going back now.

Amber met violet and there was silence, there were heavy bags under her eyes and her hair was a mess. A wrinkled shirt maybe a size too big hung limply from her shoulders, grey sweats acted the opposite and clung tightly to her hips, a very confusing picture.

“Hey” the confidence that worked its way into his voice surprised even himself, not that it mattered much when she immediately moved to close the door in his face.

“Wait” he pleaded sticking his hand between the door and the doorway, big mistake on his part as asking her to wait proved fruitless and his hand was crushed between the two “ah, damn it” he cursed, yet he didn’t remove his hand “Ichigo will you just leave” she asked. “wait wait, it doesn’t bother me” through the small crack in the door he could see her looking at him, he was hopeful when she opened the door a little more “that’s a lie and you know it” she said before slamming the door on his hand yet again “ah, fuck, damn it woman” “just go home Ichigo I-” “will you just shut up and just listen to me midget.”

He was sad, he was worried, but now he was just a bit pissed “fine, you’re right I lied it bugs me” “Ichigo-” she started, but he cut her off again. “Damn it Rukia I wasn’t done, yes, yes it bothers me, the way they looked at you bothers me. Look I know we don’t really know each other, but I haven’t really been able to sleep the last couple of nights, I’ve been too worked up over what you think of me, what you think I think of you. You’ve got baggage I’ve got baggage, I’m twenty-five and I’m already divorced, your job bothers me, but what would bother me more is if I let something as trivial as that get in the way of… I don’t know seeing you? That is, if that’s something you want.”

The silence was defining, but slowly it was broken by the creaking of her door being opened, her eyes were a little red and teary but she looked happy “I-I might have some ice for your hand” Ichigo smiled “I’d really appreciate that.” She smiled back before stepping to the side letting him in “sorry about the mess” she sounded a bit embarrassed but her place didn’t look much worse than his high school bedroom, there was a blanket strewn across her couch, a worn t-shirt just oddly on the floor, and a used mug on an old coffee table.

“I just moved into my place about two weeks ago, right now I have a room dedicated to boxes I haven’t opened” his attempt at empathizing with her rewarded him a small grin.

From the counter across from her fridge Ichigo watched as scuttled about her kitchen, looking nervous the whole time; didn’t matter that they’d spent hours talking a few nights before, in every practical sense he was still a stranger and he was in her home.

Wordlessly she provided him with a pink rabbit printed tea towel tightly wrapped around a few cubes of Ice 

“I’m sorry about your hand” Rukia said after a moment “I’ve dealt with worse, I used to get into a lot of fights in high school” though she tried to hide it behind a mask of laughter he could tell when she asked it was a serious question “what, were you in some sort of gang?” “No, but I did deal with them.”

Her single step back clued him in that his honest answer may have given her the wrong impression. “A couple of them thought I was trying to copy their style; got in more than a few fights over it. Got in more for other reasons; I never started them though, only finished.”

“Other reasons as in?”

“As in getting in between two people; I’ve never cared for bullies.”

“So you just like to play hero?”

That step back was rescinded, in fact she moved just a hair closer after asking her question; there was a new warmth in his chest.

“You could say that, a lot of my classmates did, others just thought I was an attention seeker or adrenaline junky. Can’t say I blame them, I got into more fights than anyone should. Made me tough; and a pretty decent fighter but I never enjoyed it.”

She was even closer now, he wouldn’t have to reach far for her. His fingers could brush through those raven strands and… and he was getting way too ahead of himself.

Already though it was too late; the ice was abandoned and his hand bridged the gap between them skirting along the countertop and brushing against hers. Smooth was what came to mind; the cracks from before had healed up lightening quick with no traces left.

It wouldn’t have been a surprise if she’d pulled away; but she stayed. Their fingers brushing lightly against each other as they talked as if it was the most natural movement in the world; eventually there was no helping it, he just had to cut to the chase. 

“Do you work this weekend?” He asked “why, thinking of coming to see me preform?” She asked back with a playful edge “n-no” he stuttered out, a heat rising to his face “I just… I wanted to know if you would want to have dinner with me.” Clearly flustered by his question she stumbled her way through a reply before giving up halfway through in favour of just nodding a yes. “I’m free on Saturday” she told him as her voice came back to her.

**…**

Saturday Evening

This was dumb wasn’t it? Working as late and as frequently as she did barely left time for her school work, if this turned out adding Ichigo on top of that could only work against her. But he came to her, and those words made her insides tingle with excitement; that had to mean something didn’t it. 

She wouldn’t let those worries stop her as she rummaged around her closet searching for something that didn’t look like an everyday article, unfortunately with her limited budget she always had to prioritize function over fashion. This left her with very little in the way of fashionable dresses, growling in frustration she slammed the door to her closet jostling something within and sending it tumbling to the ground, startling her. Confused as to what might have made the sound she opened her closet yet again only to find the black duffle bag she’d run away with.

Seeing it again brought with it a mix of emotions, everything she’d endured till reaching a breaking point causing her to leave, it as well reminded her of the overwhelming sense of freedom she’d felt dashing through the night away from the Kuchiki mansion towards a life full of choices she could make.

Currently most of those choices hadn’t brought her to where she wanted to be, they did let her stumble back into the lives of her friends, into Ichigo, maybe it wasn’t all bad. The bag was heavier than it looked, she could have chalked it up to the heavy canvas it was made from but something made her want to check just in case.

There was no miracle dress hidden away inside, just an old framed photo of her, no more than eight, her sister and brother both had a hand on her shoulder. They looked like a young, normal family. Her brother even looked happy in the picture, he had smiled a lot more back before Hisana fell ill, that family was a lifetime ago now. 

Setting the picture on her nightstand she went back to her closet, there was an old blue and white sundress tucked away in the back, it wasn’t fancy, it might not even appropriate for where they were going, but it was the best she had. On it went over her white cotton bra and panties, there was still a bit before Ichigo was supposed to show, enough that she could maybe do something different with her hair this time.

Of course that idea was pushed from her head as soon as she heard a knocking on her door, there was still about half an hour before he said he’d pick her up, the one time she would have been fine with someone being late.

It was however strange, she would’ve had to buzz him in but then again perhaps someone had just let him in.

“You couldn’t have been ten minutes later berry boy?” She asked opening the door to find not Ichigo, but Renji. Normally she’d be more than happy to see her oldest friend, but tonight if he stuck around too long well things could get quite awkward.

“Expecting somebody else?” He asked, she could see his eyes wandering around her body, taking note of her state of dress, she hardly ever wore a dress outside of her school uniform. “Kind of” she cryptically answered him “a boy perhaps” there was no way she could walk herself out of this one, instead she would face the music and double down.

“A man actually” she corrected him; her words brought a sneer to Renji’s face “we’re going out for dinner” his reaction while unwarranted was still much tamer than before as he began suggesting impure motivations “going after a free meal?” “Renji, why are you here?” She wouldn’t let him see his words had hurt; why would he attack her like that “everyone is going out tonight, Rangiku said you were busy but I thought I’d invite you anyway. So what do you say?” “I can’t Renji” “come on, ditch the guy we’ll have more fun I promise.”

As if on cue her phone started rumbling against her counter, both of them turned to look at it “you seriously going to get that?” He asked as she crossed the room, taking it from the counter “moshi moshi” she answered ignoring Renji’s comment “I’ll be down in a moment” she curtly told Ichigo before ending the call. “Bit rude weren’t you” Renji pointed out “He’s used to it; now Renji just go have fun with everyone, I need to finish getting ready.”

Not the answer he wanted but there was one thing she could hand to Renji he knew when he’d lost the fight. The door close roughly behind him; She took a minute to clear her mind and for him to be out of the building before taking her coat and heading down to meet Ichigo.

The only thing casual about her date were the black jeans he sported; everything else, the polished dress shoes, black dress shirt and suit vest pairing with a black suit jacket and burgundy tie… well she felt truly underdressed

“Are you alright?” He asked as she entered the lobby “you sounded frustrated over the phone, well more than usual” she smiled sweetly at his concern “I got invited out by a friend just before you got here” “the guy whose hair makes him look like a pineapple?” “He didn’t do anything did he?”

“If looks could kill” Ichigo mused “please tell me that was it” “it was” Ichigo confirmed “now come on let me take your mind off of this” “that does sounds nice” she told him with a smile.

They arrived at what was a somewhat upscale restaurant, she sighed perhaps a little too loudly drawing her date’s attention, without prompt she confessed her earlier thoughts to him “I wish I had something perhaps a bit more appropriate to wear.” He seemed to brush off her worries to an alarming degree “please, if they’re staring they’re just jealous of you” “pretty full of yourself aren’t you?”

There was a look he had that she wasn’t prepared for, genuine confusion “I can see how that could get misinterpreted” he said breaking the awkward silence “I just think you look wonderful tonight” “you’re cheesy you know that strawberry” his eyes rolled at her words “yeah yeah, let’s just get inside.”

It had been quite a while since Rukia had last been inside a restaurant like this, yet still she could hear her brother’s voice in her head. Without really thinking about it her posture changed to reflect where she was, back straight, hands clasped one over the other in front of her, and a polite smile adorning her lips.

“How did you manage to get a table here?” All around her were waiters and waitresses dressed to the nines; the walls were lined with deep read curtains accentuated with gold trim. The floor was marble of course and there were expensive looking rugs everywhere.

“I know the owners, they’re family friends; they also own a small coffee shop by my apartment.” 

Rukia nodded silently to his words; and as Ichigo went to deal with their reservations she was left to let her eyes continue to wander. While upscale this place seemed to cater all walks of people; a scared rugged looking man with face tattoos sat at one table, an elegant dark skinned woman with purple hair and matching dress sat across from a scruffy man a wrinkled green suit.

It was different from the restaurants she’d had the pleasure of visiting before; there was a warmth to it that the others lacked.

That warmth however was sucked out of the building the moment her eyes landed on the three kenseikan neatly arranged in a patron’s hair, it was all she needed. Though his back was turned to her there was only one man she could be looking at.

Her eyes too trained on the back of her brother’s head she didn’t register Ichigo’s return till he grasped her shoulder and shook “Rukia” he called to her just a little too loud for her tastes. “What is it?” She looked back to her brother making sure Ichigo hadn’t drawn his attention “can we leave?” She asked “but we just got-” “please?” She asked again cutting him off “okay” he relented with an aggravated sigh “I’ll be right back, don’t go anywhere okay.” A few cautious steps were taken to shield herself from eyes that may wander

They walked back to his car in silence and though he did a good job at hiding it, but the way he was gripping the wheel it was clear how frustrated her was. “My brother was in there” Her bid to explain her actions didn’t bear fruit “is he really that bad?” Ichigo asked “I’m a stripper and I live in an apartment where the hallways constantly smell of urine; eating at places like that every day would not put a dent in my brother’s wallet”

“He’s a rich man and made sure I was taught everything I would need to know to be a proper Kuchiki; it was one of the reasons I left.”

“Do you know what it’s like going to etiquette classes; being surrounded by girls brought up to be seen and not heard. Having someone try to drill into you that you’re basically just a glorified decoration, it’s utterly humiliating! And that’s one, just one of the many things he put me through after” the anger faded as thoughts drifted to her departed sibling “after my sister passed” she wistfully finished.

**...**

Her point was taken and his frustration had vanished; now he found himself deep in thought “if you’re not too turned off I don’t live too far from here, and I’m not too bad of a cook.” While seeing her brother did put a damper on the mood why should wither of them let this little interruption ruin the night.

“Okay” she agreed “but if you try anything” a tiny, yet threatening fist was raised against him “you’ll kick my ass” “you don’t think I can?” She questioned, “no” he replied laughing “I think you could.”

So maybe things weren’t going the way he’d planned, when did anything ever really work out for him though?

“Why do you live so far up?” The long elevator ride didn’t make for a great date activity; it did have its ups. Her impatient foot tapping was cute in its own way.

The teasing smile and promise of “you’ll see” didn’t seem to satisfy her judging by the adorable pout she was now sporting. The chance to enjoy it a little longer was ended by the ding of the doors opening; no choice left he led the way down the hall.

One foot into his apartment and he could hear her gasp as she entered behind him “quite nice isn’t it.” Partially obscured by a set of thin white curtains was a set of glass doors that offered a panoramic view of Karakura. It was the main reason he had picked this place. Though, even with the exquisite sight in front of him he found his eyes inexplicitly drawn to the girl standing next to him.

“I’m going to start preparing something, why don’t you go get the full experience while I’m busy” not waiting for her response he turned to the kitchen a few feet away and began grabbing the necessary pots and pans which hung over a small island; the soft padding of feet treading on the hardwood and inevitable whoosh of the balcony doors being opened brought a small smile to his lips.

With his coat now draped over the back of a chair and sleeves rolled he set to work prepping the few ingredients pulled from the fridge. Cooking was another of his escapes, it was like music the way everything came together to create something greater than the sum of their parts, maybe that was why he’d taken to it so readily.

Caught in his machinations and failing to notice Rukia approaching him till her hands, like icicles, were planted on the back of his neck “damn midget” he cursed, twitching unintentionally at the sensation. His suffering, and squeamish reaction had her in stiches and though there was a desire to feign anger just to get back at her he couldn’t find it within himself.

Still struggling to control her laughter she joined him at the counter looking over the ingredients strewn about “do you need any help?” He didn’t but wasn’t stupid enough to turn down an offer that let him get a little closer to her “sure, how good are you with a knife?”

“Not that good.”

“Well then, I hope you don’t mind a little instruction.”

This was his chance for a closer encounter and there was no passing it up. Fishing another from the block he gently handed her the steel blade and took position behind her.

Her body was tense but he was allowed some semblance of control as his hand encased hers. “Hold the handle gently, let your index finger curve around the bolster, it’ll grant you greater control.”

**…**

Control control control, it was all she had on her mind. It was damn near impossible to ignore just how perfectly his hand fit over his. How with each word his hot breath washed over the back of her neck. Her knees were jello and for once in her life she was thankful to be in a dress. 

“Now tuck your fingers in and use your knuckles to guide the blade.”

Torture, that’s all this was.

**…**

Pushing her plate away Rukia let out a content sigh, a hand resting on her full belly. “I want what you just ate.”

“We ate the same meal you fool” her weak insult was met with the shrug of his shoulders “you seemed to have enjoyed it far more than I did.”

It appeared he’d hit a nerve, not something that made her angry, she looked a bit unnerved. Eyes scanned the room and previously idle hands picked at the loose fibres in her dress.

“I just haven’t had a home cooked meal in a while, that’s all.”

That’s what she’d been worried about, she had made it look like it was something so much more, and he couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out. Rukia didn’t look too impressed; shrinking back into her seat and glaring a hole in his soul. 

“Look I get it, I lived off frozen food and junk in university, I understand not having the time to make anything” his explanation seemed to dull the flames of her anger “I might also not know how to.”

Excitement probably shouldn’t be the first feeling elicited by this discovery, however, “you know I could teach you” the offer had her lighting up at the prospect “really!” “Sure, you learn to cook, I get to practice teaching, and we see each other more often” truth be told it was that last one he was after.

“I have a really inconsistent work schedule” she warned “and I’m still free most days” he reaffirmed “just say yes midget” he told her as he cleared the table “fine, but you’re going to regret it” but he just laughed her off “I doubt it.”

As the night came to a close Ichigo drove her home, and this time was allowed the honour of accompanying her up the stairs and to her apartment. “You know you didn’t have to do this.”

That was the fifth time she’d reminded him, still his answer didn’t change. “I know; I wanted to.”

They stood there at the threshold to her home, he didn’t want to leave just yet and she made no move to dismiss him. Summoning his courage he closed the gap between them, his eyes searched hers for a silent confirmation.

His hand began slowly grazing its way up her arm and eventually came to a stop at the base of her neck. A final silent prayer was uttered before he bent down and placed a chaste kiss on her lips, immediately he wanted seconds, thirds even, but he would have to control himself. “Goodnight Rukia” he uttered pulling away, her ivory cheeks tinted pink, she looked up into his eyes with a smile “goodnight Ichigo.” 


	4. We Never Met

Her surprise visit had been much needed; being cooped up for a week struggling to put together a cohesive lesson plan at the last minute which, for once was not his fault, was a task that was driving him up a wall. “It’s just an group project I’m going to assign, I’m going to split them into small groups and have each one follow a different character, when we’re finished the book they’ll do a small presentation on their character.”

“You sound pretty proud of yourself” “should I not?” He asked “no, but I hope you’re fine with your students hating you.” He knew there was a humour behind her words, but it was something he worried about “do you think I’ll be good at this?”

The scrape of her stool against the tile was followed by a set of tiny arms wrapping around his neck. “Just don’t assign too many group projects and I think you’ll do fine” Rukia assured him.

For the umpteenth time that day his hand caressed her cheek and he took her lips “did I make you feel better?” Fighting her on this could be fun, but giving in would be so much easier; and with her arms wrapped around him it was just the best option “you did.”

His mouth felt oddly dry as she brought her lips closer to his “I think I deserve a reward then” “I think you do too” he agreed. His hands moved to her waist and closed the already small gap between them. Only a couple inches separated them and he was anxious to feel her lips once again, only he didn’t, she had pulled away at the last minute “do you have any ice cream left?”

Dumbfounded he could only nod his head yes as she wriggle out of his grasp and excitedly made for the fridge. “What a tease” he mumbled to himself.

Two could play it that game. As she turned around to make her way back to the table he was already there waiting for her, snatching the bowl from her hands he placed it on the counter “hey!” She looked a bit upset as he did so, but that wasn’t going to stop him “come now, you can’t just tease me like that and not expect some kind of reaction.”

His hands found her hips once again “Ichigo, the ice cream will melt” her whining wouldn’t deter him “I’ll buy you some more” he promised “right now though, I want my dessert.” It was cheesy even by his standards, it didn’t matter though as soon he had her right where he wanted her, on the counter with her legs wrapped around his waist and arms wrapped around his neck; work could wait.

**…**

Her lumpy couch did little in the way of comfort when compared to Ichigo’s; nibbling on a small plastic spoon she considered her life. The possibility of dating had been tossed to the wayside till Ichigo, not many were comfortable with the idea of stripping, and the men who were, typically were not the kind she wanted to associate with. Ichigo though, he was different. He was kind and sweet, thoughtful though sometimes a bit brash.

The only real issue she had to deal with were the constant inquiries from her friends, they meant well though. For now she was just waiting for the best time, which was when she was sure Ichigo was ready for the onslaught of questions that would fly his way.

Though she would’ve liked to have spent the rest of the day with him tomorrow was the start of classes and while she didn’t need to do anything to prepare he apparently still had some work to do. She couldn’t wait to hear about his first day and the kids he was teaching, he had this energy about him when he was explaining things he was passionate about that just made him more attractive, if that was even possible.

Course she had still neglected to tell him that she wasn’t exactly out of school yet, however they could probably work around it, keep it low. After all if she’d managed to keep her stripping a secret, with the only person she’d told being Rangiku, for a few months now without arising any suspicion. If she could do that than keeping her love life under wraps shouldn’t be too hard.

Dragged from her thoughts by the obnoxious ringing of her phone, the shrill sound it made drove her crazy and while any normal person would change it by now, the fact it was so annoying was the reason she kept it. “Moshi moshi” she answered “Rukia!” The phone was swiftly pulled away from her ear for fear of hearing loss.

“Hey Ran, what’s with the call?” She asked after her friend had settled down. “We’re going out tonight!” Rangiku’s demand was met with an eye roll she wasn’t privy to “come on Ran, we have class in the morning” trying to reason with Ran was like trying to reason with a pack of hungry dogs, it just never worked; and yet she always tried.

“Yeah, and it’s our last year we’re not going to get another chance we’ll be up to our eyeballs in homework.” 

Rangiku did have a point, and it was the first day so they probably weren’t going to go over a lot so being a bit more tired than usual wouldn’t be a detriment. “Fine” she relented while doing her best to sound exhausted “great! Make sure you bring Ichigo” she thought of protesting, but as Rangiku had pointed out with their soon to be busy schedules this could be their last chance to go out for a while.

“Okay” she agreed again only to be on the receiving end of an ear-piercing screech. “Cool, I’ll text you the details later” there was a click and then nothing “goodbye to you too” Rukia muttered to her phone. She could choose to be annoyed at her friend for just hanging up on her like that, but admittedly she was a bit excited. However, whatever Rangiku was planning probably wouldn’t be what Ichigo found fun.

A sadistic grin made its way onto her face as she began thinking of all the ways she could trick him into coming. Course when he inevitably found out he’d find a way to get back at her, though his way of getting back at her usually ended up with her back against a wall, or bed, or the couch. Either way this was going to be a good night for her.

Though her closet contained a selection of much more modest clothes not wholly suitable to the places Rangiku liked to party, she still had a couple of items that could grab attention. Lying one out on her bed she stopped for a minute, in her head swam a multitude of different ideas each one growing the smile that had made its way to her lips. Settling on one she picked up her phone and dialled Ichigo’s number, careful to mask the excitement that threatened to leach its way into her voice.

**…**

Clubs had never particularly been his cup of tea so to speak, the loud electronic and pop music were bad enough, then there were the drunken dancers who had a tendency to grind on anything that moved He didn’t have anything against people wanting to have a good time, he just liked his personal space just a little too much.

Currently however he was in the middle of wondering why the fuck he had ever been against clubbing. With Rukia pressed so tightly against him and the beat of the music spurring her into a fever; his body was currently having a hard time deciding exactly where to send his blood.

“Ichigo” she groaned out continuing to move against him, looking up to meet his gaze, eyes half lidded and face flushed, whether from all the alcohol she’d consumed or the vigorous activities they were currently partaking in. Whatever reason the erotic sight before him was testing every ounce of self-control he had and she had to know what she was doing.

They had been there not even an hour and yet he was already wanting to leave, not because he hated it quite the opposite actually, he was having a really good time. It wasn’t even the responsible adult part telling him to make sure he got enough sleep, no it was the horny teenager that wanted to spend the rest of the night on top of Rukia making her moan his name. Of course this would mean they would have to abandon their friends and though Ichigo had no qualms about abandoning Keigo he didn’t know if he could say the same about Rukia, cursing him to this hellish torment.

As the beat died and just enough light filled the club so that patrons could safely make their way to the bar Ichigo and Rukia remained on the dance floor, his hands still possessively holding onto her hips, though she didn’t seem to mind. “Ichigo” she said his name again, urgency in her voice this time “do you need some water?”

He was quick to let go of his lust in favour of concern, she twisted out of his grasp and turned to face him. Looking into her eyes he found a fire he hadn’t been expecting, her arms wrapped around his neck pulling him down to her level. He was expecting a passion fuelled kiss, instead with her lips next to his ear she whispered “take me home.”

No more encouragement needed, with her hand in his he just about ran out of the club leaving their friends at the bar confused.

Though his cautious driving took them longer than he’d have liked it did nothing to dampen the mood between them; her hand resting high on his thigh seductively sliding back and forth as he drove. The trip to her apartment fared no better, trying to climb stairs while carrying someone else was already a difficult task, having said person lavishing your neck with attention while you try to safely climb the stairs was even harder, not impossible, just harder.

Careful not to hurt her, but rough enough for a little excitement he pushed her against her apartment door “you better not have left any noticeable marks” his voice was rough and filled with desire. Her smile teased him as she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled it taut around his neck and with a sly smile to him “it’s nothing your collar can’t hide” he was going to get her back from that.

Fishing the key from her pocket and opening the door he wasted no time making his way to her bedroom and unceremoniously dropping her on the bed. Her mouth opened, likely to scold him but she wouldn’t get that far as he claimed her lips with his own before she could utter a squeak; this is what he had been waiting all night for.

The sweet little moans she made as he palmed her clothed breast were like candy to his ears; he trailed kisses down to her neck, hell bent on leaving her with some marks she’d have to explain away tomorrow. Her hands trailed through his hair before taking a firm grasp of it and pulling him off of her, he smiled at her actions, when she got rough things got fun.

Off went his shirt leaving him in just the plain white tank top he’d been wearing beneath, his own hands found their way under her blouse. As they trailed across her stomach her blouse went with it exposing inch after inch of her delicate, milky skin. It ended bunched up around her neck, restricting his access to it. With no other means to continue he pulled it clean off; not the first time he had seen her like this but it still hadn’t lost its magic, and he doubted it ever would. Her legs wrapped around his waist catching him off guard, she took advantage of his momentary lapse and rolled them over.

A confident smirk adorned her lips as she straddled him, a habit of his she undoubtedly picked up. He didn’t mind though, it made it easier for his eyes to feast on the sight before him; the lacy black bra provided contrast to her skin. “Enjoying the view?” She asked “there’s no way I couldn’t” he answered. 

With that damn smirk still teasingly on her lips she placed a chaste kiss on his, one led to two and two lead to countless more. Pressing his luck his hands drifted to the clasp that held her bra secure, filled with an uncontrollable lust he forwent permission and unclasped her bra. The straps slipped from her shoulders and the offending object began slipping from its place.

“Finally, took you long enough” the sheer fact that he could’ve seen this sight earlier, well that was enough to drive him crazy.

Stricken with lust his hands attached themselves to her breasts, roughly kneading the small mounds and eliciting moans sweet as ambrosia from her. “Ichigo” his name came like a purr from her lips, dripping with desire, he never wanted to hear anyone else say it like that. With such a positive response from just his hands he dared to take it further, and though she protested the removal of one he smiled knowing she’d like what came next.

Propping himself up on an elbow and positioning himself in front of her breast and dragging his tongue across her nipple. He could hear her gasp, clearly not anticipating his action.

His wet muscle made circles around her nipple before finally taking it in his mouth; again she cried out his name in pleasure, her arms wrapping tight around his head, pulling him further into her modest bosom. Her other nipple soon received similar attention, between his finger and thumb he began pinching and rolling it working desperately to elicit more of her sweet moans.

Their combined passion kept them together for what seemed to be hours, only stopping when her breasts couldn’t take his attention anymore. Her head rested on his chest and he absentmindedly ran a hand through her silky raven locks, the moment was perfect and it would be too easy for him let go and get the rest his body was craving.

“I should go” he told her, yet failing to make any sort of move “just a bit longer” she protested “if I stay any longer I’m not going to want to leave” “am I just that irresistible?” She asked turning to face him, smile on full display. “You have no idea” he told her, cupping her chin he brought her close just to place another kiss on her lips.

“I hope we can do this again soon” she said as she pulled away from him, clearly she had the willpower when he did not. “How about my place on Saturday, and we skip the club” he purposed “that sounds nice, but I have one condition” “is that so” he responded, eyebrow cock in question.

Fingers more nimble than his snatched the button up from the ground before he could “I want to keep this” she told him sliding it on. He really liked that shirt, but he had to admit he liked it more on her; the collar, snug up against her neck on one side while hanging loosely off her shoulder on the other, like she was a piece of art. “I’ll see you Saturday then” he said, his voice cool and calm, unlike him.

The Next Day

Already he’d finished his third cup of coffee before even reached his office, he wasn’t going to complain though. “You’re drunk aren’t you?” Uryu asked shaking his head in disappointment.

“What the fuck are you on about now?” He asked his friend.

“You were staring at nothing and smiling, I’ve only seen you do that the one-time Keigo managed to get you drunk”

“I can’t just be happy?” Ichigo asked him “you… no” Uryu responded. Ichigo could feel the scowl return to his face which Uryu was all too ready to gleefully point out “now that’s more like it.”

Tired physically, and of his friend’s antics he pushed open his office door and let it close on Uryu’s face, that didn’t seem to stop him though as seconds later he was standing in front of Ichigo’s desk. “How rude do I have to be to get rid of you?” He asked Uryu “more than what I usually put up with” Uryu fired back. With a roll of his eyes Ichigo tossed his coat on the back of his chair and pulled the papers he would need from his bag.

“If you’re not drunk, what has you acting weird all of a sudden?” If his scowl could deepen it would “can I not just be in a good mood for once?”

His question was a bit too aggressive but Uryu just stared at him, eyebrow raised in scepticism. Resigned to disclosing his personal life Ichigo let out a sigh of defeat “I’ve been seeing someone.”

“I’ll admit I was not expecting you to actually take my advice for once.”

“It’s not like I was trying to, I just sort of stumbled into it” Ichigo explained “you stumbled into a relationship?” Uryu asked him “we just kept running into each other and one thing led to another.”

“I must say I’m looking forward to meeting this woman, she must be special considering I never saw you act like that with Orihime.” Uryu was right of course, this was uncharted territory for him but he didn’t have to point it out, it didn’t exactly reflect well.

“Did you just come see me to check in on my private life or was there something else?” He asked hoping to change topics “well I wanted to make sure you were showing up today considering you missed this morning’s staff meeting.”

Oh that did not bode well for a good first impression and he would now certainly have to work harder to earn his peer’s respect. With a groan directed at his misfortune he plopped down in his chair, running a hand through his hair he looked to his friend “you wouldn’t happen to have any good news for me would you?” “Not really” Uryu responded with a shrug “you might not want to get too comfy either, class starts in about five minutes.”

Leaping from his chair he crossed the room in record time, hand on the door ready to go and he was stopped “aren’t you forgetting something?” Uryu asked, pointing at a stack of papers on his desk. “I would’ve remembered” Ichigo’s snide remark barely registered to Uryu, “sure you would.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for this” “probably.” Though his response wasn’t one that would instil confidence in most people, Uryu knew him better than that. “I’ll leave you with some advice” Uryu started but Ichigo brushed him off “don’t need it” yet his friend persisted “don’t try to be the fun new teacher please. Everyone tries to be in their first year and it never works out for them” his response to the advice given probably scared his friend… he laughed. It wasn’t boisterous over the top loud, just a light, polite chuckle.

“Relax” he told Uryu as he placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder “I’ll be fine.” As the bell rang he took that as his cue to say goodbye and though his class seemed ungodly loud he didn’t fail to hear Uryu muttering, wondering just what kind of woman he’d found.

“Alight settle down!” He barked over the roaring students. As the voices died to a gentle murmur he looked out to the rows of faces staring intently at him. It was weird, being on this side of the class room, such a small room and yet there was so much going on. There was a girl in the front whose eyes kept darting to the empty seats on either side of her, clearly he should be expecting a pair of late students. There was a similar story happening in the back row with a bald student smirking at the empty desk in front of him.

“It seems that in two years a few of you still haven’t learnt what time class starts” that probably wasn’t the best joke to start the year off with, but the bald kid in the back was howling so it couldn’t have been that bad. “Alright, guess I should probably introduce myself” though before he could begin there was a soft, yet urgent knocking on the door.

He had prepared to scold the late teens but as he opened the door he was greeted by the most amazing pair of violet eyes he had ever seen; and a hickey, barely contained beneath the collar of her shirt. This was bad, this was so bad he told himself as he stared down at the woman who for the last couple of months he had called his girlfriend.

He was sure at the moment he was mirroring the shocked look adorning her face “sorry we’re late sensei” another girls voice cut through to him drawing his gaze up and to Rangiku’s, this day was getting worse by the second now.

She motioned to him to let them through, and though he was still in shock he managed to summon enough will to move out of their way; ignoring the other student that followed her. His eyes followed Rukia as, with her head down, she took her seat… which just so happened to be directly in front of where he had been standing moments ago. Taking a deep breath and clearing his throat he turned back to the class ready to address them again.

A Couple Hours Later

As the lunch hour rolled around Ichigo was busy pacing back and forth on the off white tile that lined the floor in his office, his pace so furious there was perhaps a chance he could warp the flooring, try as he might though there was just something holding him back from being able to come to terms with the situation he found himself in.

So wrapped up in thought he didn’t notice the door to his office open till Rukia stood right in front of him “Jesus Christ midget!” He exclaimed at her sudden appearance “Ichigo we need to talk” “oh no you don’t say.” He was letting his emotions get the better of him, he needed to calm down and think.

Grabbing the half-filled mug of cold coffee that had sat forgotten on his desk he hurriedly finished it before abruptly slamming it back down. “This is bad” he finally managed out “I know” she agreed, he didn’t need to see her to know she was just as worried as he was, it was written in her voice. A small part of him wanted to send her away so he could figure this out on his own, the way he always had before. The other, louder part, just wanted for nothing more than to whisk her into his arms and assure her that everything would be alright.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were a student?” He eventually asked “you knew I was a teacher.” “I didn’t think it would matter, I thought you were going to be teaching middle school or primary school.”

He turned to face her, he was angry and he knew it was showing “what gave you that idea?” He asked sharply “you did Ichigo” “oh really?” He fired back, that seemed enough to draw out the anger bubbling within her.

“Yeah you jackass, you kept referring to your future students as kids, not teens, not young adults, but kids. I’m eighteen I am not a kid anymore!” “Then why are you here?” He asked “because I have a very early birthday.”

Her anger was justified and he began to realize that this might actually be more his fault than it was hers, not something he was keen on admitting though.

“What are we going to do?” She finally asked him. There was only one proper solution and it brought with it pain, pain he did not want. “We have to break up” he regretted saying those words the instant they left his mouth, the look of pain she had nearly broke him “why, why?” She asked him “is it so that you can keep your job, am I not good enough, did we not go far enough last night” she was stuttering now as tears flowed freely from her eyes.

“We can just keep our relationship a secret” she tried reasoning. “If it was just me who would get in trouble I would go along with that” he admitted to her “but it’s not, you could get in trouble too, your future could be taken away, people might look down on you, a girl in an illicit relationship with her teacher… they’d say you were just using yourself for marks, and I can’t let that happen to you… I just can’t Rukia.”

Tears were now threatening to spill from his own eyes as he looked at her, the woman he desired so much, he now had to give up. There was silence for a long while, the two of them just looking at each other, he wanted to provide her with the shelter of his arms but just couldn’t bring himself to actually make the move.

“You should go” he finally told her, she opened her mouth to speak, but whatever she wanted to say seemed to choke and die before it had the chance to make its way out, instead she just took off, leaving him pounding on his desk in frustration. 


	5. He's Fine

Saturday afternoon and his hardwood was covered in little piles of paper, an organized mess of worksheets belonging to his three classes of students. Ichigo himself was currently cross-legged on his couch, head resting in a hand and wondering just what it is about chapter analysis that his students couldn’t come to grips with… well that and one other thing.

How did she have simultaneously some of the worst grades in the class, and some of the best? While they were together he had never suspected her of being anything less than intelligent, and some of her work reflected that, but a good portion of it left something to be desired.

Could it be work, could that be what was holding her back? Whatever the reason he was going to have to talk to her about this, and that did not sound like a good time. Two weeks ago and this… well he didn’t know how he would have dealt with this two weeks ago, but it wouldn’t have been this hard to come up with a solution.

But there in lay the problem, two weeks ago he was busy shoving his tongue down her throat and now he had to keep a professional approach to everything leaving him to second guess every decision he made about her. There was always the chance that he’d interfere too much and give her an advantage, or be too aloof and hurt her chances at bettering her marks, it just made his head hurt.

Thankfully he was spared another headache by a bang on his door, careful to not disturb any papers he answered the door thankful to find his friends standing there. “Uryu, Chad, what can I do for you?” He asked standing aside.

“Well we were supposed to find out why you hadn’t handed back any of your student’s work yet, do you want to explain why it’s scattered all over your floor or should I just assume you’ve already gone crazy?” Uryu may have been right; taking a look back at it, it did seem a bit crazy.

“First I need to know, do students really want their homework back?”

“The ones who do well do” Uryu explained “but it’s mostly the parents, your sheer laziness has actually endeared you to some of the students.”

Good comebacks were not his forte “fuck you” he responded, Uryu brushed him off with the wave of a hand “real original Kurosaki” classic Ishida, pulling out the last names.

“Not that it isn’t fun standing around and being insulted in my own home but can we move on?”

“Fine” Uryu agreed while pushing up his glasses with purpose “do you want to enlighten us as to why your student’s work is scattered across you floor?”

“Thought you’d never ask” Ichigo responded dryly “I wanted a decent sized sample of their work, it’s to make sure they understand what we’ve covered, and if there’s a large discrepancy on a specific topic I’ll cover it again.”

Uryu seemed blindsided by his reasoning and looked completely bewildered “that’s actually a really smart idea, how’d someone like you think of that” Ichigo just shook his head silently at his friend’s comment.

“What have you learnt” Chad asked him “so far, only two of my students know how to write an effective chapter analysis “that’s unfortunate” Uryu chimed in; to Ichigo it was even more so because in one of their rare moments they actually agreed on something.

“I don’t mean to be rude… well maybe to you Uryu, but if that’s the only reason you guys came I should probably get back to this, apparently I have a time limit on how long I can have my students homework, who knew.”

That wasn’t the end of it though as Uryu and Chad didn’t budge “am I going to like where this going?” Ichigo asked them “depends, how does drinking with your co-workers sound?” Uryu asked “like a terrible time” Ichigo responded “too bad, you’re going, or do you want to look even worse to everyone?”

He could stay home, wallow a little more in self-pity and further the negative opinion of him that was surely growing, it was tempting. “Ichigo” Chad started “you should come out” scratching the back of his head Ichigo relented “alright, let me just go get my coat.”

The bar was lively to say the least, fellow teachers were interspersed with the regular crowd, with some looking about as thrilled as he was to be there. A few familiar faces were mixed in, some he wanted to avoid and a couple of teachers that had been there long enough to have taught him, this was going to be a terrible time.

“Kurosaki-San, so good of you to join us… for once” speaking of people he wanted to avoid “Ise-San, good to see you again” black power suit and clipboard, nothing less than he expected from her “if I may, why didn’t I see you our first meeting of the year?”

Was she really doing this, was work all she ever thought about? “I didn’t get an email about it” a lame excuse, but it did happen to be the truth. “And your friends couldn’t inform you?”

“His friends were busy marking exams and writing lesson plans” Uryu interjected before he could defend them “and I do believe that the mailing list is your husband’s responsibility, is it not?”

“Well yes… it probably was his fault” she admitted. Ichigo might’ve been impressed by how quickly Uryu turned things around, but he was still trying to get over the fact she was married.

“Who’s she married to?” He asked no one in particular as she walked away “Kyoraku-San” Uryu answered. It looked like his friend expected him to be shocked and appalled, he was only one of those. 

“Seriously, her and Shunsui; didn’t she hate him though, always complaining about how late he was when handing back homework and that he never took anything seriously.”

“That’s what you’re taking away from this?” Uryu asked him

“I mean they’re both adults, besides do you really think anyone could force her to do something she didn’t want to” at this point he didn’t know who he was defending, Nanao and Shunsui, or himself and his still lingering feelings for Rukia.

Tabling an offer to buy his friends a round of drinks let him slip out of the conversation before he got too invested in its outcome. It was never hard for him to order drinks, hair like his tended to draw attention.

“Hey there Ichigo” that shrill voice had him wishing for Nanao to pop out and begin scolding him and doing her best to make him feel like a child. It honestly sounded like a much better time than dealing with her.

“Riruka… what are you doing here?” Her smile faltered for a minute “I’m the new nurse, don’t tell me you didn’t notice” was everyone from his graduating class coming back? “Sorry, I’ve been a bit preoccupied” “so I’ve heard” she said shuffling closer to him.

“If you ever need any help, easing your workload” her finger now trailing across his chest in a suggestive manner, he was about ready to forcefully remove it had she not done it herself, seemingly startled about something.

Another hand, from someone he couldn’t see was currently making its way across his back and resting itself firmly on his hip, their body pressed tight against his. He was about to get angry, was he just a piece of meat to these woman, and then, vanilla and almond butter. On its own accord his hand mirrored the woman’s pulling her tighter against him and closing what little gap remained.

A warm set of lips tainted with the smell of alcohol were placed on his cheek “Riruka-Chan, good to see you again” Orihime’s sweet voice sang out “I… you… but I thought?” “Oh dear, I think I’ve broken her” Orihime said with a giggle.

“Would you excuse us” he said leading Orihime away from Riruka who was standing shocked, seemingly unable to come to grips with what had just happened in front of her.

With the harpy out of his sight he dropped the act, pulling away and turning to face her. His eyes couldn’t help but ogle the woman in front of him, she looked positively stunning in a low cut blouse and tight jeans, her hair loosely falling down her back. Her figure was a stark contrast to the woman who occupied too many of his thoughts recently.

“Sorry about that” she apologized, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly as she did “guess that still gets under my skin.”

“There’s no need to apologize, it’s a good thing you came along when you did.”

This was awkward, no way around it, five years apart and the first thing they do is act like a couple. “I should have called you” she said after a moment “a little heads up might have been nice, but Uryu told me so it’s not a big deal.”

He paused for a moment trying to come up with something to say or ask, she beat him to it though “Uryu mentioned you were seeing someone” “I… I was seeing someone” he told her “something just came between us that we couldn’t work around.”

“Do you want to come join me and the guys, it’ll be like old times” he asked, the sudden nature of how he changed topics could’ve given a potential listener whiplash. She didn’t seem bothered though, taking the invitation and leading the way with him in tow.

**…**

Another day came and once again Rukia wasn’t in the right mood to be at school, only getting four hours of sleep after working for eight, and now having to listen to Rangiku brag about the fantastic date Keigo had taken her on was just salt on her wounds.

It’s not that she wasn’t happy for her friend, quite the opposite, but hearing about her friend’s love life only served to remind her about how dead hers had just become. It didn’t help being forced to see him five days a week, or that she still slept in the shirt she’d taken from him. The worst part though was having to see him with that other woman.

It had started just over a week ago, every day he would open the door and she would be right there saying good bye to him with a smile on her face. The boys would clamour each day to catch a glimpse of her, not that she blamed them. The auburn haired beauty was picture perfect with her long legs, sweet smile, bubbly laugh, and breasts only rivalled by Rangiku.

It was a wonder Ichigo had been with her as long as he had if that was the kind of woman he could get. Today like every other day was no different, as the door opened and Ichigo walked through, there she was waving good bye to him.

With a thud he dropped a sizeable stack of papers down on his desk, drawing the attention of the class to him and away from what had been occupying them. “Alright” he said, beginning to address them “you can all go home and tell your parents that I’ve given you back your homework and they can get off my back about it.”

All around her she could hear her classmates groan as one by one they were called up to collect their share of the stack. As her turn neared she prepared herself, keeping her head down in fear of seeing disappointment on him, she knew what kind of marks she was in for.

“Some of you are going to find that I’ve left you a little note, this is so you will remember to come and see me about your marks, they were abysmal. This is your final year, some of you are really going to have to step up your game if you want to get into a good university.” She dared a peak at him, an action she quickly regretted as she found his eyes lingering on her. Her head went down about as fast as it had gone up, whether it was shame or embarrassment she didn’t know, and didn’t care. 

Not bothering to look at her marks she simply flipped through eventually coming across a sticky note attached to one of the pages. She had half expected to see some kind of personalized message from him, but no, just a quickly scribbled tomorrow morning, my office on the highlighter yellow paper.

“Now, it seems I’m going to have to put off todays lesson, as I’m sure you’re all painfully aware by now it seems most of you are having trouble writing an effective chapter analysis, so today that’s what we’re going to cover, and I’m going to drill it into you till I’m reading Shakespeare when I’m marking your work.”

A collective groan from the class didn’t seem to discourage Ichigo as he began writing on the board. She cared, the notebook in front of her though didn’t do well to reflect that. Her eyes were heavy and his class while usually interesting was dryer than a desert at the moment. His voice was even and calm, soothing really.

Minutes passed and her eyelids grew closer and closer together till all at once everything went black. Drawn from her dreams by being violently shook awake; slowly she looked up at all the smiling faces of her class mates, and that damned confident smirk on Ichigo’s, she’d never hated it before, in fact it had been charming in its own way.

Right now though she’d never hated anything more “so good of you to join us Miss Kuchiki” there was that arrogant tone that always accompanied it. Some of her classmates seemed to have found his words funny, quietly snickering to themselves at her misfortune.

“Not everyone shares your proclivity for this sort of work, so while this lesson isn’t for you, it is for the rest of the class so if you could find a less distracting way to occupy your time I would appreciate that.” The class quieted down at his words, quickly focusing their attention back on the board.

The action was a little strange with just how quick they moved but that wasn’t concerned her, what did were the five words she couldn’t get out of her head this lesson isn’t for you. He had to be lying right, frantically she searched through her papers ignoring all the barely passing marks till she came across the three reflections she had wrote for him, sure enough on the top right hand corner of each a bright red one hundred percent.

The Next Morning

Quite frankly this was possibly the weirdest situation she had ever found herself in, having her ex turned teacher lecture her about grades while they sat alone and unsupervised in his office. It had changed since she had last been in here, a couple of shelves that had been empty were now filled with books of varying sizes and landscape pictures he must have taken at some point, they were quite beautiful.

“You’re not even bothering to listen are you?” He asked, his voice cutting through her thoughts “not really” she answered, turning her attention back to him. “Look this is as awkward for me as it is for you; is it work, is that what causes these crazy fluctuations in your grades? How come I can give you perfect marks on one thing, then the next assignment I mark you’re barely passing.”

Choosing not to answer his question and instead ask her own, she surprised him, and herself by what came out “who’s the girl?” “W-what” he stammered out, caught off guard “you seemed to have moved on rather quick” she accused him “I just want to know who she is.” “You mean-” he began “the one who walks with you to class every morning” she clarified, interrupting him in the process.

He seemed hesitant to answer her, whether it was because he felt guilty for his actions, or he was coming up with an excuse she couldn’t be sure either way. “She’s my ex-wife” he eventually answered “We went to school with the school’s nurse, Dokugamine-Sensei, she had a crush on me then, and she has one on me now. Orihime walks with me to class in the morning just to keep her away; I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Can we get back to why I asked you to meet me?” She wanted more but the little bit of guilt she felt forced her head to nod; so he continued “what is it?” He asked again.

“It’s work” she admitted “between being here and working I don’t have much free time” “why don’t you just work fewer shifts?” He questioned “because while I’m not doing great, it’s better than when I didn’t have this job. I lived paycheque to paycheque for two years and now, now I have some money put away. I know sacrificing my grades for money isn’t the smart move but there were days before where I didn’t have enough to eat. I don’t want to go through that again.”

Her words must have hit something in him, as she finished speaking he was out of his seat and behind her, wrapping his arms around her. “Ichigo, this is inappropriate” not that she minded “just shut up will you midget, look I don’t want you to go through that again, but I don’t want you condemned to working at that club because you skimped on your grades.”

“You shouldn’t be talking like this” she reminded him “and you shouldn’t be choosing between food and your education, but here we are.” He pulled away and she immediately missed the warmth his arms provided “I’ll help you get your marks up.”

“How do you plan on doing that berry? Unless you want to start lying about the quality of my work and forcing others to do the same.” He just smiled at her “I’ll figure something out” he told her “I always do” she believed him of course, when he looked at her like that he could tell her anything and she’d believe it.

**…**

Their time alone was cut short by a polite knocking on his office door “come in” Ichigo called from his position beside Rukia. The creak of the door was followed by a quick apology “sorry, I didn’t know you were with a student” “it’s quite alright” Ichigo said dismissing Orihime’s worries “I actually needed to talk to you about something.”

Sparing a glance at Rukia he turned his eyes back to his ex “it seems we may have given a few of my students the wrong impression” he told her “they think we’re together don’t they?” Orihime asked “yeah” he confirmed “I know this is going to come off as rude but just till these rumours fade it might be best that you don’t walk with me to class anymore.”

He figured she would be disappointed, they had just fallen back into some level of friendship and now he was putting some distance between them. What he wasn’t expecting was for her to so easily accept it, quite cheerfully actually.

He didn’t fail to notice the sparing look she gave to Rukia as she left his office, there was nothing he should be worried about of course, he had maintained a professional distance and conduct with her, up until today he had made sure never to be left alone in a room with her, though that wasn’t terribly hard. Still though, why the look?

“Ichigo” hearing his name he turned towards the still sitting girl “you didn’t have to do that” “I think I did” he admitted. “I was just using her to hide from a problem, I told myself I’d stop doing that a long time ago.”

His serious moment of self-reflection was quickly cancelled by a jab at him “and here I thought you were doing it for me” Rukia said, “maybe a little” he confessed “mostly to keep you from being mad at me for dumb reasons.”

“I’ve never gotten mad at you for a dumb reason” she fired back, hell bent on defending herself. Ichigo stopped grabbing his things and looked at her “do you not remember that huge fight we had about that dumb rabbit?” “Chappy’s not dumb!” She too loudly declared, punctuating her words by tossing his stapler at him.

“Damn it midget” he cursed picking up both it and the staples “I need to remember not to leave things you can throw at me lying around.” “I wouldn’t throw things at you if you had better opinions” he just scoffed at her words before reminding her of their impending class “we’re going to be late if you keep sitting around.” “Just tell the class you lost track of time” “no, we only had this meeting because of your marks, if someone is getting blamed I’m making sure it’s you.” 


	6. Like a Hurricane

Five, four, three, two, one and just like magic Rukia erupted into a coughing fit, whatever she had he’d watched develop over the course of a couple days, today seemed to be the worst though. Four times in fifteen minutes, that had to be some kind of record. However as impressive as it was, it was still a distraction for all the students around her “I’m going to ask you this again Miss Kuchiki, are you sure you don’t want to go see the nurse?”

While her skin had always been like snow she had somehow been looking paler than normal now for the past couple of days. “No, I’m fine” she responded “you haven’t been fine for the last two days” he countered “are you sure?”

A heavy emphasis was put on the question, something she blatantly ignored “I’m fine” she responded. With how she looked and sounded there wasn’t a chance anyone in the room was convinced by her words. That cute button nose of hers was red and raw, her voice sounded an octave higher due to the stuffed nose.

He couldn’t blame her for not wanting to see the nurse, he wouldn’t want to either, but he also just didn’t want to get aggressively hit on.

Even with her distractions plentiful he still managed an effective lesson, at least in his opinion. His worries for her only weaned as her friends took over for him, making sure she was okay and pestering her to go to the nurse. Her nose was crinkled and brow ever so furrowed, all the signs that she was reaching her breaking point, he knew it well. She deserved to be that frustrated though, after all it was her decision to come to school sick.

With class coming to a close and her sickness only seeming to get worse as time passed he pulled out one of the most powerful tools in his teaching arsenal “Rukia, can I talk to you outside for a moment?” Hardly ever addressing his students by name brought surprise whenever he did, and it thankfully stopped the usual student oooos that followed his actions.

“What’s this about Ichigo?” The question left her lips just as the door clicked shut, “you look like shit” he told her placing his hand to her forehead “and you’re burning up, you need to go home and get some rest.” “

What do you know?” The question was followed by her weakly pushing his hand away “my father is a doctor, I grew up around medicine and I’ve seen the flu before, now go home.”

“I’m fine Ichigo, really” “you look like you’re going to fall over from exhaustion any minute” he countered. However, his words fell on deaf ears “I’m going back to class Kurosaki-Sensei.” He was the teacher and yet her words left little room for discussion. It didn’t matter though, she could do her best to keep up her façade with an elegant turn on her heel, but it was the false bravado that was her undoing.

The quick movement threw her off balance and sent her tumbling into the door, she would’ve hit the floor had it not been for his quick intervention, grabbing her limp wrist and pulling her into his arms.

Chairs and desks scraped against the tiled floors as her friends rushed to them, evidently she had managed to open the door on her way down. “Ichigo what’s wrong?” Rangiku was the first to ask forgoing any formalities, not that he particularly cared at the moment “she just fell” he responded helping Rukia to her feet.

She wasn’t on them long before being hit by another coughing fit. She would’ve probably already been on the floor had he not been supporting her from behind “you’re going to see the nurse” this was a demand and there was no room for discussion, he was taking her willingly or not.

“I’m trusting all of you to behave and not take advantage of the fact that I’m leaving you alone, if any of you do decide to take advantage of my absence it will not be me you have to deal with, it’ll be Ise-Sensei, understood?” “Yes Sensei” the class responded clearly frightened by his threat.

Taking Rukia into his arms, despite her weak protests, he hurriedly made his way through the halls which were thankfully devoid of students. A single step into the nurses’ office was more than enough to feel violated by the heavy stench of bleach and perfume that permeated the small two sectioned room.

Riruka’s voice barely registered with him as he swiftly passed through her office and to the second section. Two of the walls were occupied by small, neatly made cots that looked too small even for Rukia’s tiny frame. It did turn out to be enough though as he laid her down and covered her with a dirt-brown, scratchy wool blanket that had been folded at the end of the bed.

He hushed Rukia before she even had a chance to speak, even in this condition he knew she would only further protest his treatment of her. “Just get some rest” he whispered while secretly brushing a misplaced lock of hair from her face.

While her friends began crowding around he busied himself looking through the various dust covered cupboards of bandages that stood by the entranceway. “Can I help you?” Riruka asked, her voice finally cutting through his mess of thoughts “cold pack” he muttered throwing opening another cupboard, its hinges squeaking loudly in protest at his violent treatment of them.

“I only have ice” she informed him “that’ll do” he muttered before opening yet another cupboard. Finding it stocked with yet more bandages he slammed it shut, breaking a hinge and startling the occupants of the room “am I going to find anything other than bandages?” He asked.

“No, I’m not allowed to administer any non-prescribed medication” the sting of curses that could’ve spilled from his mouth and ultimate question about what good was this nurses’ office were barely held back. “Do you at least have a thermometer?” Riruka nodded before leaving to get the two items he had requested.

Ichigo snatched the items out of her hands upon her return, barley sparing the time to mutter a quick thank you; not that she seemed to mind, too caught in in the fact that their hands had touched for the briefest of moments.

With the requisite items now in hand he could return his attention to Rukia. Avoiding the mess that was her friends he knelt by her side and gingerly placed the small bag of ice on her forehead, a sigh of relief came as it touched her skin. With the opportunity presented he unceremoniously shoved the thermometer into her mouth, whether because of the glass tube or because she had finally decided to accept her fate it remained where he put it, albeit with a dangerously cute pout.

The students talked to one another in hushed whispers, clearly trying to avoid drawing his attention and expertly failing at doing so. “Could you all speak up, I can’t quite hear you” like a deer in headlights they stopped, the only sound was Rukia’s laboured breathing “finally” he muttered pulling the thermometer from her mouth.

“What does it say?” They all asked together “forty-one” he answered “I don’t understand is that good or really bad?” Renji asked “it’s bad” Riruka answered for him “children usually run fevers this high, adults usually sit at forty” he explained “for her to be running a fever like this, it must be bad. What this means is she needs plenty of rest” his eyes found hers as he now gave her his full attention “and to stay home, it’s honestly amazing she’s awake right now.”

As the bell rang signalling the end of class Ichigo stood to addressed her friends “all of you to class, come on” “but, but” they protested together, a feat that left him wondering if they practiced to be so in sync. “Rukia needs rest and she’s not going to get it with you five hanging around, Dokugamine-Sensei is more than capable of looking after her, so all of you to class now.” He hated being hard on them, after all he wanted to do the same, but their presence would most likely just keep her awake.

“Matsumoto, I’d like you to stay behind for a moment” he told her as all six of them left the nurses’ office. “I’m sorry about using your name-” “that’s not it” he said cutting her off “though if you could put an end to any potential rumours that’d be great. I actually wanted to ask how Rukia usually gets home?”

“The bus I think” She replied, puzzled by his question “that’s what I figured, thanks, you can go catch up with your friends now.” He shouldn’t, but it seemed he was going to be paying Kyoraku-San a visit later.

**…**

The blanket he had so carefully covered her with, while thoughtful, was proving to be a nuisance as its rough fibres scratched at her neck bringing with them a minor discomfort, too much to ignore. Rolling onto her side brought with it the possibility that her hair could barricade her neck against the persistent itch. Even as she succeeded on that avenue hushed voices around her made it impossible to maintain the unconsciousness she so desired. An eye creaked open to the view of an orange mane of hair, tempted as she may be to call out she wasn’t dumb.

It took longer than she’d care to admit for the world to stop spinning and for her to be able to focus on the other occupant of the room. At the end of the day though her effort was for naught as before she could come to her own conclusions the man gave himself away “ah Miss Kuchiki, good of you to return to the land of the living.” The cheery, yet deep and relaxed voice could only belong to the principal. What was he doing here though, surely he had more pressing matters than a sick student?

She tried forcing herself into a sitting position, it would have been difficult and a bit painful had she not been met with verbal resistance from the two men. “There’s no need for that” “just stay how you are Rukia” Kyoraku-Sensei and Ichigo told her respectively. Though for a while she had lived by the rule, anytime is a good time to annoy Ichigo, perhaps there was room for amendments, like when he was flanked by the principal. Settling back into the bed she, at the very least, turned to meet their gazes.

“I don’t mean to be rude, but why are you both here?” She asked, for Kyoraku-Sensei she tried to maintain an air of respect, however the hoarseness of her voice did its best to rob her of that. The nobility her brother had taken so long instilling in her, gone because of a damn flu.

“It was brought to the attention of Kurosaki-Sensei by one of your friends that you may have some trouble getting home in your current state.” Either Ichigo had lied to the principal, or Rangiku had put him up to this; as annoyed as she could have been she was actually rather grateful either way, the mind was willing, but her body was lacking.

“With that in mind he has offered to give you a lift home, that is if you’re comfortable with it.” The look on Ichigo’s face was a silent plea for her to take him up on the offer, there was a quite sigh of relief from him as she nodded her head “I would appreciate that” she managed out. “Good” her principal declared with a startlingly loud clap “I’ll leave the rest to you Kurosaki” he said already sauntering out of the office. 

She looked at Ichigo and he looked at her, “I’ll go get your things then we can leave okay” wait leave… how long had she been out? Straining her neck she took note of the clock on the wall, already well past four o’clock, she’d slept through the school day!

Shoes squeaked loudly against the hallway’s tiled floor and not too long after Ichigo re-entered, red in the face, had he been running? “Sorry that took so long” he apologized while setting her backpack down beside the bed “do you want to try walking?” He asked, knowing what the other option entailed. She managed out a “yes.”

Pushing the blanket off was a struggle, her sore muscles did no favours but the real problem was the chill that she was met with, the weather had be quite mild today but she was shivering like it was winter again. Brushing past her Ichigo grabbed the blanket she had just discarded and wrapped it around her shoulders “I don’t think anyone is going to miss this” he mused. “I don’t really think it’s my colour” she joked, he didn’t laugh but she could tell by his voice he was smiling when he responded “just make do midget.”

Crouching proved a difficult task as she sought to retrieve her backpack “just let me worry about that” he chided her, that didn’t stop her as she slung it over a shoulder. “I can do it” she said taking a wobbly step towards the exit, one after another, each step bringing with it the fear of falling.

Leaning against the entranceway she realized just how much it was taking out of her “by the time we reach my car it’s going to be tomorrow” Ichigo remarked, smirk adorning his face. “Shut up” she managed between breaths. Sighing Ichigo moved beside her and slipped his arm under hers. He seemed unaffected by the glare she sent his way “just let me help you, I want to get home sometime this week.”

“You already made that shitty joke.”

“It’s important enough to me it bared repeating. Now come on the sooner we get out of here the sooner you can lay down” with that in mind she let him help her along, reaching her bed sooner did sound nice after all.

**…**

Just about as soon as her butt hit the seat she was fast asleep, her forehead pressed against the window now smudged from makeup worn off by the fog from her breath. Currently they were sitting at a red light and Ichigo was trying his best to make the smart decision. If he went straight he’d be on the right track to take her home, and if he took a right they’d be less than a minute from his apartment. Resting his head against the steering wheel his hand moved and the rhythmic ticking of the turn signal filled the cabin.

The rumbles from the engine continued to echo off the concrete walls of the underground garage even after he had turned off the machine. Miraculously Rukia remained asleep as he pulled her from the passenger seat, with their bags over his shoulder and her body limp in his arms he scurried towards the elevators, even in the quiet garage he was sure not to do anything that could draw attention. With a ding the stainless steel elevator doors parted and he stepped inside, awkwardly hitting the button for the fifteenth floor.

Thankfully the ride had been without stops and soon he was fumbling his keys, trying to unlock the door. After dropping them and somehow managing to pick them up without waking Rukia twice they were in, his arms were starting to feel like limp noodles and he elected to forgo taking off his shoes till she was in bed. In what seemed to be a weird twist of events she started stirring as he laid her down. “What’s going on?”

Her voice was barely a whisper.

“I just carried your fat ass to bed” he joked, lazily she stuck her tongue out at him “go back to sleep, I’m going to go get you some medicine.” For once she didn’t argue, just rolled onto her side and fell back asleep, he could get used to that.

Retrieving her keys he made the executive decision, she was staying. Slipping quietly out of the apartment and shaking the door behind him to be sure of the lock; his body was ready for action and the only thing that seemed to keep him still was the twirling of car keys around his finger. When the doors opened to the garage he took off speed walking to the car, heavy footfalls reverberating around him.

Sitting in the driver’s seat and trying to rid himself of the worries he was feeling wasn’t exactly working; turning the key brought the beast to life with a howling roar. The rumbling from the engine could be felt in his chest and with it brought an odd relief, he was doing the right thing. Putting it in reverse he pulled out of his parking spot, shifted, and headed towards the exit.

It had been a while since he had last been in her apartment, it remained just the way he remembered it, and he hated that. Many nights they had cuddled on her couch watching movies and talking long into the night, everything from the walls to the kitchen just served to remind him of better times.

The closest room was the bathroom, of all the extras he’d stocked up on toothbrushes were something that had not made the list, thus he resorted to scouring for hers. It wasn’t hard, standing out from the porcelain sink with its bright pink colouring and Chappy the rabbit prints. Course finding it brought with it the realization that in his hurry he’d forgotten any sort of bag for her things, that was fine though, she had to have something he could use.

Her room seemed to be the only place where he didn’t feel uncomfortable, that itself was a strange thought; perhaps it was because of all the time they had been together he had only been in here once, and he had been much more focused on other things. Clearing his mind of the inappropriate thoughts he began scouring through her room grabbing up things he figured she’d need, putting aside the knowledge that this was a huge invasion of her privacy.

Her dresser, a faded walnut stain and full of dings and chips in the wood was the first to be looted. There wasn’t much he would have to grab a couple of shirts and pairs of underwear, this all did depend on her listening to him about resting though, and who knew how that was going to turn out. 

Pajama pants probably would be appreciated and go a long way to make him not look like a creep, explaining that he went through every drawer trying to find them however, that was going to be hard, especially because he came up short.

The closet lacked them too, the duffel bag though was a good find. He needed to think about this logically, her room was immaculate and there were no clothes anywhere in sight. If they weren’t visible than they had to be hidden somewhere, if she was anything like him than she would’ve placed them under the pillow. A grin broke out as his assumption paid off and he pulled his shirt out from under the pillow… his shirt, is that what she slept in?

There was a mixed bag within him of equal parts elation and heartbreak; he just sat on the edge of her bed staring at the damned thing longer than he’d care to admit before shoving it with the rest of her things and heading to the door. “Oh just fuck this day” he muttered as someone started knocking on her door.

He stood still like a statue, waiting to either be found out or for them to go away. It was starting to look like the former was more likely to happen as the knocking got more urgent and Renji started calling out for Rukia. He was starting to get the idea that the boy couldn’t take a damn hint. Seriously if the girl you spent three minutes calling out to hasn’t answered nothing’s going to change; honestly at this point he was more annoyed than scared and just wanted to tell the kid to shut up.

As his patience wore thin he was spared more torture by more voices joining Renji outside the door. They were too quiet to discern who they were coming from, but a safe guess would be more of her friends. He was happy that they cared so much, it reassured him, there would always be people there looking out for her when he couldn’t.

With a very loud and defeated “fine” it appeared that Renji was leaving, breathing a sigh of relief all he had to do now was wait a bit longer for the others to leave and he was home free. At least that’s how it was supposed to go, they weren’t supposed to knock themselves, what came next however was far worse “Ichigo, open the damn door I know you’re in there.”

At the very least it was only Rangiku, he did turn out to be wrong about that. When he opened the door a very shocked Momo was standing right beside her “I hate you” he said to Rangiku who was looking too damn smug with a cheshire smile. “Nah you love me, I keep Keigo occupied” he hated that he had to slightly agree with that.

“Yeah, but when we do hang out all he does is talk about you and it’s weird with you being my student.” “Well currently you’re in the home of another of your students” she pointed out “please don’t remind me of that, I’m still working through this.”

Their bickering could’ve continued had Momo not cut in “could one of you please tell me what’s going on?” She asked. Both he and Rangiku turned to the very confused girl “Momo, do you remember how Rukia described the man who helped her with Hisana’s flowers?” “Of course” she responded, she still seemed confused, not putting the pieces together “she said he was tall, handsome, and had wild orange” she trailed off, her eyes widening in realization “you’re… you’re the handsome man” she said pointing at him “yeah” Ichigo awkwardly acknowledged.

“How’d you know it was me in here and not Rukia?” He asked, turning his attention back to Rangiku. “Please, you asked me how she was getting home” Rangiku stated as she moved by him into Rukia’s apartment, Momo cautiously following behind. “You two were inseparable so I knew you wouldn’t resist taking care of her” “it was that obvious to you?” He asked, wondering if it was really that easy to read him when it came to Rukia. “Yes” she answered, short and sweet.

“Okay, that aside what are you two doing here?” He asked the pair “I thought we were here to check on Rukia” Momo answered first “I just wanted to check on you, Momo wanted to come too and I thought it’d be hilarious” Rangiku chimed in with an answer all her own. “Don’t worry, Momo won’t tell anyone, right” she said turning to her comrade “well…” Momo began “I guess if you were together before becoming our teacher it’s okay.”

Wiping away the cold sweat that had formed on his brow “thank you so much Momo” he said sincerely “it’s nothing Kurosaki-Sensei” she responded with red tinted cheeks “just call him Ichigo, we’re out of school anyway” Rangiku told her as she dug through the duffle bag he’d prepared for Rukia.

“Guess there wasn’t much for you to take” Rangiku said handing it to him “not really” he agreed “now come on, I still have to grab some medicine” he said shooing the girls to the door. “I’ll tell Rukia you two stopped by to see her, I’m sure she’ll appreciate it” he told them while locking the apartment behind them.

The two girls called out goodbyes to him as he threw the bag in the back of his car, giving them a quick wave himself he set out, heading for the nearest pharmacy.

Entering his bedroom he found Rukia in a similar state to when he’d left, blanket wrapped tight around her petite frame, her hair spread wildly over his pillow. Had she not been sick, or his student, he might have found it quite alluring.

Setting the bag down he gripped her tiny frame, gently shaking her awake. “W-What’s going on” she mumbled, still groggy. “It’s me midget” he told her, prying the blanket from her grip “Ichigo, what’re you doing here?” She asked, becoming more coherent by the second. A smirk played at his lips as he informed her “you’re in my apartment” that quickly brought her to her senses “what!?”

She was startlingly loud considering how sick she was. “You need someone looking after you, now calm down, stressing out isn’t going to help.”

Steeling himself for her reaction by making sure his head was sufficiently out of her reach he began “Rukia, you’ve sweat through your uniform, leaving you like that will only make things worse, and with that in mind we need to get you out of it.” His preparation had been for nothing, he had been right to assume that she would try and hit him, but her movements lacked any of her usual fire.

“Just let me sleep” she grumbled “and stop trying to get into my skirt.” “Rukia” he said her name with a sigh “I’m just trying to help you, please” he pleaded “trust me.”

“Fine” her consent was a tad reluctant, and he wasn’t sure but her cheeks seemed redder than before “no funny business” that was a condition they could both agree on.

Pulling loose the bow around her neck and unbuttoning her top proved a much more complicated task when keeping his eyes glued solely to the backboard of the bed. His hands raked against her skin as he pushed her undershirt over her head, he could feel the goose bumps forming under his touch and it sent shivers up and down his spine. He kept repeating _she’s my student_ over and over in his head, a desperate mantra, a silent prayer to whoever was up there to give him the strength to push the feelings bubbling back up inside him down to the furthest depths he could find.

“Ichigo… I’m cold, please hurry” she sounded meek and it reminded him just how much control he had at the moment, he was not taking advantage of that!

Reaching into the bag he pulled out the first thing his hand came into contact with, which just so happened to be the shirt she’d taken from him. Not caring to admit it, but it probably was the best option considering how long it was. “Do you… do you” he kept trying to ask but the words were dying in his throat, one quick deep breath and it was off to the races “do you want me to take off your bra?”

He could feel the heat radiating from his face, he just wanted her to be comfortable and every woman he had or was close with always complained about their bra.

There was a weak smack to the back of his head, it was proceeded though by a barely audible “yes.” Tentatively his eyes opened, capturing and forever staining his mind with the sight of her basically bare back; shapely, with muscles taunt “why did I open my eyes?” He groaned to himself.

Nimble fingers made short work of the clip that bound her to the lacy fabric. Even through his shirt as the bra fell away he was able to feel the soft mounds and stiff nipples pressed against his chest. With almost supernatural speed she was covered, the task before him though would be the true test of his resolve.

Laying her back down his hands went to her skirt, wiggling it off her hips and down those long, creamy… “no, no, no” he muttered, not letting his mind go there.

Somehow he managed not to lose himself to the beauty lying in front of him. “Oi, who told you you could sleep” his voice cutting in the quiet of the room, her eyes fluttering back open at them “I’m tired” she protested “medicine first, then rest.”

Rukia grumbled more as he lifted her into a seated position, her back pressed firmly to his chest “do I have to?” She asked looking with disgust at the small cap in his hand holding the viscous purple liquid “depends, do you want to get better sooner, or later?” “Fine” Rukia croaked out as he brought it to her lips, not much more convincing was needed as she quickly downed the foul liquid, scowling the whole time.

Gently he let her back down onto the bed, finally letting her get the rest she desired. It seemed she went out like a light as her head touched the pillow. Pulling the thick grey covers over her sleeping form and brushing the loose strands of hair from her face he smiled softly down at her before creeping out of the room, careful not to disturb her.

**…**

From the depths within came the howling roar of a hungry monster stirring Rukia from her sleep. Violet eyes slowly opened taking in the room around her. A crack in the midnight curtains cast a few rays upon the cherry walls. Had there been any doubt to her on where she was the bookcase nestled next to the bed whose shelves sagged from the weight they were forced to carry, and the beat up black guitar in the corner were both identifiers as to who this room belonged to. 

Even with the protests lodged against her through the aches and pains of her body Rukia still managed to swing her legs over the side of the bed. Walking proved a much more daunting task, her first few steps were wobbly to the point of almost falling over with each one. Persistence was the key and even with some difficulty she managed out of the bedroom. Cool air washed over her through the slightly ajar balcony door, the shirt, like a dress, billowing around her at the breeze’s tender touch.

“Just when I was starting to worry” the words were spoken softly, with jest, and yet they cut through the space between them with ease.

She chose not to respond right away, choosing instead to wistfully gaze out the balcony door. Alas the glass was like a double edged sword, gifting her with the amazing view of Karakura below, as well as a hazy reflection of Ichigo’s not so graceful appearance, back pressed against the kitchen counter with his head tilted back lazily eating a slice of pizza.

“Shouldn’t you be at school right now?” She questioned “school ended an hour ago” he answered through a mouthful of food.

“You’ve been sleeping for almost an entire day” he finished after swallowing “like I said, I was starting to worry.”

“Rukia, is everything alright?”

His question followed after several minutes where she failed to give him her attention “yeah, I’m just hungry” she responded dryly. “That’s good” his tone was light and dare she say happy “you sound better and appetite is usually a good sign, why don’t you sit down and I can fix you something.”

It was a good offer, but she had been silently hoping to snag some of the pizza, its savoury smell had been tantalizing her since entering the room. Something gave as she went to take her first step, tumbling to the ground Ichigo was at her side in an instant taking her into his arms and placing her in a seat at the island in the centre of the kitchen.

“Still feeling dizzy?” He asked, his hand pressed firmly to her forehead “you’re still pretty hot” he observed “you must have one hell of a will.” His compliment wasn’t lost on her, his signature smirk developing as the heat radiating from her cheeks doubled.

“Did I miss anything?” Her question was meant to hopefully bring a quick change to the topic.

“Actually, there were a surprising amount of announcements today” he said turning to the fridge to deliver on the earlier promise of food. “With this being his first year as principal I guess Shunsui wants to establish himself as a more approachable, more fun man than Yamamoto. There’s going to be a dance in about a month, and he’s got some grand idea for the cultural festival, we’re all a bit worried because he hasn’t even told Nanao.”

Hearing the casual use of her teacher’s names was a bit jarring for her, but thinking it through she shouldn’t really be surprised, after all they were his fellows.

“Oh, ugh before I forget, Rangiku and Momo stopped by your place when I was grabbing your things, they hope you get better.” “What!” She yelled, bringing on a violent coughing fit. Once again he was by her side, soothingly rubbing her back “relax, it was Rangiku’s fault” he was obviously trying to shift the blame.

“It could’ve been worse, I could’ve opened the door when Renji was there.” She let out a pained groan as the coughing subsided “you couldn’t just not answer the door?” She asked “Rangiku called me by name, I didn’t know what to do.” Her head slammed roughly into the counter, she’d meant to do it but turned out to hurt more than she’d expected.

“Please don’t do that again, I don’t need your friends thinking I abuse you.” The counter was looking more and more tempting with each minute.

“Look Rangiku already knew, and I’m honestly surprised Momo didn’t put it together the moment she saw me, after all how many people have wild orange hair?” Daring a glance she was not surprised by the knowing look he was giving her, that had been her description of him… well the most important part anyway.

“Just eat this and try not to hurt yourself anymore, okay” there was a finality to his words as he slid a bowl of oatmeal in front of her, followed by a steaming mug of some brown liquid. “It’s broth” Ichigo explained before she could ask “it’s good for you” there was no doubt in her mind he was right. But as she let some of the gloopy mush fall off the spoon and back to the unappetizing pile it came from her resentment built; especially as he had the audacity to continue his delicious looking meal in full view.

In her flu addled mind admitting the meal was surprisingly good would be the same as admitting defeat, so even as she scooped the remaining vestiges of oatmeal from the bowl her faces was one of a passive aggressive furry.

“There, done” the dishes were whisked away, still shaky she left her seat and headed for her backpack which had been left carelessly propped against the couch.

“Don’t even think about it” Ichigo called, his back was still to her when she looked, how had he known? “I need to finish my work, I have multiple assignments due this week” she protested “what you need is to go back to bed” Ichigo casually told her, his healthier condition allowing him to snatch it away from her rather easily.

“I’ve already spoken with your other teachers” he informed her “all those assignments you have to do, we’ve agreed to give you an extension, and all the regular day to day work you can forget about.”

That seemed to be it, her patience was usually thin but when sick it was perpetually broken “why are you doing all of this?” Her voice was frighteningly calm as she looked Ichigo in the eye “why did you bring me back here instead of taking me home, why are you talking to the rest of my teacher’s for me? We broke up because you were afraid of getting caught and what could happen to me, now more of my friends know, and if we got caught like this we’d still get in serious trouble, did you not think this through?” He rightfully looked hurt as she spit out the words with a fury her sickness should’ve prevented.

“If you’re willing to take these risks now, why not a month ago when I was crying my eyes out in your office? Why couldn’t you have just been cold to me, it would’ve made moving on possible. There are days I can’t keep my eyes off of you, I see those little smiles and the glances that last longer than they should when you think no one’s paying attention. I know you ask Keigo how I’m doing, he’s not exactly great at keeping a secret. I don’t want you doing those things anymore, they make me too happy… and I don’t want that anymore. I don’t want to care about you anymore, I don’t want you to care about me. If you’re willing to take risks now, to risk yourself, to risk me, then damn you, damn you for breaking my heart.”

Be it luck, or an otherworldly force she managed out her angry rant before succumbing to her illness. Bent over and gripping the couch for support, her fingernails digging into the soft leather, a desperate attempt to stay on her feet and keep an aura of dignity about as her lungs fought to free themselves from the shackles of her body.

Unable to articulate her feelings as Ichigo approached her she settled for backing away as he took step after step towards her. Even after those words he still wanted to help her, how was that supposed to make her feel anything other than guilt.

“I don’t… need you” she wheezed. His steps came to a halt and hands which had been outstretched, ready to help, fell limp to his sides. With nowhere else to run she struggled her way back to his bed, slamming the door behind her. Awake for such a short time, and yet her body yearned for her to return to bed.

Like a fine wine it paired well with wanting to forget the guilt and remorse she was feeling. Throwing the sheets over herself and shutting her eyes did little to alleviate her problems, it didn’t seem to matter too much as soon she was out like a light, falling into a fitful sleep.

Hours Later

Whether the light filtering in through the crack in the door, shining clear across her eyes, or its squeaky hinges, something drew her awake once again. The time for screaming profanities and taking hurtful jabs had long since passed for her, so as the silhouetted head began to retreat she called out to it “Ichigo.” More light made its way in as he took cautious steps to her side, probably doing his best not to incur her wrath again.

There was a long stretch of silence as she worked on what to say, with him there not saying anything, just looking at her, well that made it harder. “I’m… I’m sorry, for earlier I mean” it was the best she could come up with, it seemed to satisfy him though. The bed depressed as he took a seat by her feet, playfully he grabbed a hold of one and gave it a shake.

“I didn’t know… I shouldn’t have been making life harder for you, things must already be hard with how short you are, I shouldn’t have been adding to that, it was shellfish.” Even when being serious he still found time to insult her height, it only brought about questions as to why she liked him so much.

“Once you feel better, I’ll try to keep my distance” at his words a pit of despair formed deep within her, one glance to him told her he felt it too. His eyebrows knit together, eyes were accompanied by prominent dark bags she hadn’t noticed before, lips pulled together in a deep frown, the pieces fit together perfectly, a puzzle of frustration.

Resisting the urge to reach out was pointless this time, lying in his bed covered in a shirt she’d taken from him, so many rules had already been broken, why not a couple more. The chance her advances were rejected was high, yet in a twist she didn’t see coming as she reached for Ichigo’s hand he met her halfway.

She was gently pulled into a seated position as Ichigo scooted closer. While he looked like he was still coming to terms with his actions Rukia pressed her advantage and placed her lips softly to his. For just a minute she allowed herself the pleasure of forgetting her troubles and linger in the sensations that always accompanied their kisses.

“Can you stay with me, just for a bit?” She asked quietly, while pulling away from him. Ichigo must have still been in shock as his response was very slow nodding. Gently he laid her down on the bed, her heavy eyes closed as soon as her head touched the pillow. The bed shifted under his weight as he moved closer.

A calloused hand was placed softly on her cheek, his thumb soothingly moving in small circles. A smile crept onto her face as she allowed herself to be lulled to sleep by his actions. Just before sleep overtook her, softly, ever so softly she could hear him start singing “Once I thought I saw you in a crowded hazy bar, Dancing on the light from star to star.” Had she not been sick the moment would’ve been perfect, but as it was… this was pretty damn close.

**…**

“One more time, let me check one more time” he pleaded “Ichigo, you’ve check four times now, I’m better, and I have to get home and start working on my assignments.”

“Fine” he relented, tossing the thermometer in the sink to be washed later. His eyes wandered over her one more time as she stood at his door, dressed in her uniform, bag slung over her shoulder, and, judging by the tapping of her foot, impatiently waiting for him to say good bye. 

“Got everything?” He asked as he moved to stand in front of her “I think so” she replied, her eyes trained to the floor, avoiding his gaze. Something just seemed to be off with her, and it wasn’t the awkwardness of being here with him, they had gotten over that already “what’s wrong?”

She shuffled her feet at his question, mumbling out a few different answers before he finally had enough “Rukia, what’s wrong?” “Nothing” she shot back, but it wasn’t very convincing “I will call Keigo, who will then give me Rangiku’s number, who will then tell me what’s got your panties in a twist, or you can save me all that time and headache.”

“Rent’s due in a week, and I missed almost a week of shifts, it’s not an issue I just have to work the floor, and I’ve never really cared for that” she finally admitted to him.

“I could just give you some money” his offer was met with rejection “thanks, but I’d rather earn my money than just take it from you, I’ll be fine, don’t worry.” She offered him a smile, one that actually managed to assuage his worries, it didn’t stop the unwelcomed, ugly monster that was jealously from rearing its head. “I’ll see you Monday” her words snapping him back “yeah… Monday, see you then.”

The door clicked shut behind her and Ichigo let out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding in. As it often did in stressful times a hand raked through his messy mop of hair; there had to be something that could occupy his attention, marking was out of the question, and there probably wasn’t anything good to watch either.

Amber eyes looked to the fridge, beer, alcohol didn’t sound like a terrible idea at the moment, it wasn’t like he was going anywhere either… maybe he’d just take a walk.

After waiting a safe amount of time he grabbed his coat and keys and headed for the elevator. Not even a foot out and he was already being bombarded by his former boss turned landlady shoving a clipboard in his face “sign this” she told him, thrusting a pen into his hands. Quickly scribbling his initials on the line he handed it back to her before making to the exit. “

Where do you think you’re going?” Ikumi called after him “for a walk” he yelled back “not till you deal with your mail” she told him “I’ll get it when I’m back” he reasoned “no, you’ll get it out of my lobby now.”

Confused he looked over his shoulder, finding her standing next to a rather sizable package “the hell is that?” He questioned “you tell me, it’s addressed to you.”

Even with how large it was he was still surprised by just how much heft there was to it, what the fuck had the old goat send him this time? Resorting to dragging it the final way into the apartment before resting it against a wall; ripping through the staples that held it shut he caught a glimpse of a sleek black frame through the mess of bubble wrap. Heaving it out in one go he was greeted by the sight of two platinum records in front of a movie poster, a list of awards the movie had won at the bottom, along with a list of several songs he’d written that had presumably been used.

A disgusted sigh escaped him as he dragged it to the unoccupied bedroom he was currently utilizing as a store room. There had been a message from his father on the back telling him to update his address, fat chance that was going to happen if they were going to send him shit like this.

The cheque for twenty five thousand dollars American from Gotei Records that had been include… well maybe it was the fact that his songs had been used completely out of context in what seemed to be some cheesy romance movie, but it made him feel cheap. He didn’t want the money.

It left him with questions as to what he would do with it, he could give it to his sisters or some charity, hell he could put it away forget about it then be surprised by it later, or he could do something he really shouldn’t. He was definitely going to do something he shouldn’t, his hand already reaching for the phone in his back pocket.

**…**

“Rukia!” Keigo called to her just before she left the backstage and to the floor, “what is it Asano-San?” She asked, quickly turning to address him. “Look, I know you hate private rooms, but there’s someone willing to pay a lot of money for your company” he informed her. To her, that was the worst part of this job, the one-time she’d done it the customer had left with an impressive black eye for daring to touch her, many of the girls had similar stories, thankfully Keigo had no problem kicking out patrons.

The disgusted sneer that had made its way onto her face certainly couldn’t have been ignored and yet Keigo pushed forward “just try one more time, I’ll be close by if anything happens.” “Fine” she agreed, snarling at the idea though.

So while Keigo waited off to the side for the inevitable need to kick out the man inside she pushed through the curtains, her movements the epitome of sex. She couldn’t even get out a word before being told to stop “that’s enough” Ichigo’s voice rang out through the tiny room.

“Look, just after you left the other day I got a package, a few of my songs had been used in the soundtrack to a movie and it went double platinum, so they sent me a plaque and a cheque. Now I don’t want this money, but I figure you won’t take the full amount, so I only brought a bit” he indicated to a rather large stack of money on the chair he was supposed to be sitting in. “It’s two thousand American, or about two hundred and ten thousand yen, keep it, give it away I don’t care, but I don’t want the money, those songs were personal and they were used in some cheap movie, it makes me feel dirty.”

Words began forming in her mouth, but she never got to use them “I know I promised I’d stay as out of your life as best I could once you got better, but the thought of someone being close to you… leering at you. It made me jealous” he confessed.

“Could I kiss you, just once more?” “Yes” she answered, her voice a bit horse as she suddenly found her mouth as dry as a desert. His hand, placed on the nape of her neck helped guide her lips to his “I’ll miss you” he confessed as he pulled away from her “goodbye Rukia.” Just like that he was gone before she could even reply.


	7. The Dress

Tireless fingers worked her temples trying to dispel the ache that had made its home in her head “can you all just be quiet for a moment!” Rukia yelled over her friend’s ruckus. In her home, around her coffee table they were subject to her whims, meaning when she told them to be quiet it was like a switch and the only indication of their presence were the barely audible intakes of breath.

Violet eyes focused on the worksheet in front of her. A silent stream of curses directed at Ishida-Sensei flew from her mouth as she raked her mind to remember the reason Pluto had its planet status revoked. “Just look in the textbook” Renji piped up. His insubordination drew her ire and she fixed him with a cold, Kuchiki stare.

“Would that not defeat the purpose of learning and studying, just looking at the answers whenever I need them?” Her question was rhetorical and by the way he was uncomfortably fidgeting under her watchful eye he knew not to answer. Attention once again directed at the page in front of her, fingers resumed massage duty trying to coax the answer out of the reaches of her mind. When it never came to her she resentfully resorted to, as Renji had suggested, finding it within the pages of her textbook.

A small snicker from him and the textbook was sailing through the air, narrowly missing Renji’s pineapple shaped head and landing with a thick thud on the grey carpeted floor behind him. “W-what the hell Rukia!” He exclaimed; of course he was the only one who hadn’t found the situation bone shaking, side splittingly hilarious, and was therefore still sitting still as the rest were on the ground laughing at the silly looking mixture of confusion and shock adorning his face. “Seriously that could’ve hit me and you’re all laughing” Renji continued trying to shun their actions, but failing miserably.

First to regain their composure Rukia looked to her friend and shrugged “it wasn’t going to hit you, stop whining.” Brushing off his worries only spurred him on “I could feel it go by my head, you almost hit me.” With an eyebrow raised and eyes narrowed she asked him “are you insulting my aim?” Rukia allowed herself a small smirk as Renji seemed to fumble over his words, going back and forth between trying to change the topic and argue against her assessment of his words.

“Can you shut him up, this could go on forever” Ikkaku asked, “fine” Rukia agreed, a bit disappointed her torture had to end. “Renji, if you apologize I’ll forget you ever said something so insulting to me” his blubbering ceased and a look of relief washed over him “oh thank god” he started “I’m so… wait a minute why am I apologizing to you, you should be apologizing to us.”

“What are you talking about?” She asked not following where he was going “you’re never around anymore, either you’re helping out a teacher or you’re at work, this is the first time in two weeks we’ve actually seen you out of class.” He had really gone for her throat with that one, and a quick glance around the table showed them all in silent agreement. “It’s not that we blame you for anything Rukia” Momo very quickly explained “It’s just that we miss you” Rangiku tacked on.

“It’s not exactly like I have a choice you know” Rukia defended herself “I have to work, and I had to agree to help if I wanted those extensions on my assignments, it’s not that I want to be away from all of you, it’s that at the moment I have to.” There was a pit of guilt deep down in her gut, and it seemed, to her, that her friends were feeling it too, if the looks on their faces was anything to go by.

“What do they even have you do?” Momo asked when the silence finally became too much to bear “hopefully it’s not something as cruel as washing desks, those soaps would be murder on her delicate skin.” She wasn’t quite sure how Yumichika knew about her sensitive skin, but she did find herself flattered by his worry over it.

“It’s nothing of the sort” she informed the feminine man “I’m just running small errands for them, or helping with some marking.” “Oh, and what has Kurosaki-Sensei been doing with you?” Seeing Rangiku’s knowing smile had her fearing for her secret, as it would be plain for their friends to see that there was something they were hiding.

“Nothing, he’s just been letting me catch up on some work in his office.” Ran looked almost disappointed… no, she was disappointed with her answer. The same frown Rukia received from Rangiku every time she turned down the advances of a boy was now, once again, being used on her.

She didn’t need that, not now, not in her home. Casually, she reached for her phone, checking the time. Three o’clock, there wasn’t a need for her to be at work till seven, the only one that knew that though was Ran, maybe she’d get the picture though. “Damn” she mumbled, drawing their attention “what is it Rukes?” By the tone in Renji’s voice she had at least successfully gotten him to worry.

“I just lost track of time that’s all, I’m going to have to kick you all out though, I need to get ready for work… sorry.” Most bought it pretty readily, packing up their things and telling her not to worry about it, the only outlier being Ran, who had yet to move and was looking fairly confused, probably wondering why she’d just lied to their friends. Avoiding her gaze, Rukia began deflecting the inevitable questions fielded to her, doing well to avoid giving any hints as to her current place of employment; which was getting harder and harder to do.

With the last one out the door she turned around, falling back against the door and sliding to a sitting position, knees held tight against her chest. It’s not like she wanted them gone, like they had made ever so apparent this had been the first time in a while they’d all been together. Rangiku was too casual with her secret, Momo, she seemed able to keep it, but what of the boys, what would they think of her? And Renji how would he react? Still acting like they were together, probably still talking to her brother… what would he do?

With four hours left till she had to be at the club the best thing for her now was to hunker down on the couch with a warm blanket, a bowl of ice cream, and reruns of Chappy. That would settle her frazzled nerves.

Hours Later

Cool night air greeted her with its gentle touch as she pushed through the back door of the club, its hinges, exposed to the elements, squealed audibly in protest. Like every night she gave the surrounding area a cautious survey, and like every night before nothing was out of place.

Through the moonlit alley by the side of the club she walked, thoughts of her waiting bed kept her occupied, distracted, and oblivious to the growing sound of shoes scraping against the pavement behind her. At the bus stop, under the light of a sole street lamp casting its warm, comforting orange glow; her sneakered foot tapped impatiently, and she hummed a small tune, both helping to ease the passage of time.

Even with it being mid-May that didn’t stop the odd chilly night from appearing unexpectedly. With hands firmly planted deep in her pockets it was nearly impossible to react defensively when she was grabbed unexpectedly from behind. A foreign hand covered her mouth, muffling the scream that was drawn forth by the assailant’s actions, the other arm was used to restrain her, wrapping around her midsection and restricting her arms.

“Be a good girl, and I won’t be too rough” the words were whispered in her ear as he dragged her back towards the alley she’d just come from. Twisting and contorting her body to awkward positions didn’t help, and when she tried going limp and falling to the ground, it hadn’t fazed him much, it just seemed to make him angry.

His hands tightened their grip, and while it had already been hard for her to breathe it was worse now, air whistled between the tiny gaps in his fingers as she struggled to just draw breath. With no other option left she let him drag her back to the alley and be pinned against the brick wall.

Tears freely streamed from eyes clenched shut; the urge to vomit was pushed down as his tongue slithered unabated about her ear. The hand that held her to him ripped open her coat and slowly found its way under her shirt. The goose bumps left in its wake were the result of fear, so much different than those from Ichigo’s tender touch.

Painfully, she became aware that his hands had indeed stumbled upon their intended targets. Fingers, like claws, dug into her breast, and though they remained covered by the thick and plush material of her bra, it didn’t do a thing to ease her worries, if he had his way it wouldn’t be protecting her for long.

Just as she’d predicted, with a violent tug it was made to sit uncomfortably under her breasts; stretching the straps and making the plastic sliders dig into her shoulder. “Those things always get in the way” he whispered in her ear as his fingers resumed their painful work. His words, they spurred on something within her. Anger overtook fear and with a renewed sense of clarity she drove her heel into the top of his foot.

His grip faltered for a moment as he instinctually reacted to the pain. Her hands free she grabbed his arm, trying to pull it off of herself, “bitch” he growled throwing her to the ground; that was his mistake though. A swift kick to his kneecap sent him tumbling to the ground, giving her a chance to make an escape, it didn’t end well. He had recovered quickly and before she could take off his hand grabbed a hold of her ankle, down she went.

Trying to regain her footing seemed useless as he held tightly to her ankle, slowly pulling her back to him along the concrete. Bits of gravel tore at her clothes and lodged themselves in the palms of her hands and under the bits of fingernail that remained as she clawed at the ground, trying to get away.

“I was going to be nice, but now I’m going to make sure it hurts.” The malice in his voice scared her more, but she couldn’t let him get the best of her now, he couldn’t have what she was unwilling to give. As his hands occupied themselves tearing at the fabric of her shirt hers searched the ground around for anything that could make for an effective weapon. Too many pebbles, there had to be something that would be more than a mild annoyance. Then, there it was. Her fingers curled around something large, rough, and with some heft; and with not a moment too soon as the tell-tale jingle of a belt buckle pierced the night air.

Gripping the object tightly she swung it hard at where his head should’ve been. Nothing connected but he backed off, just enough for her to bring her legs back, plant her feet firmly on his chest and push with all her might. The dull thump of a body hitting the ground was the go ahead she needed, scrambling to her feet and running like a bat out of hell.

The cold air stung against her exposed skin, stark contrast to her lungs which burned with a lack of oxygen. Neither slowed her, the only thing she could hear was the pounding of her heart so there was no certainty that he wasn’t following. Even as her apartment slowly came into view she didn’t dare slow down, tearing through the parking lot and coming to a sudden stop, nearly colliding with the door leading into the building.

Her hand trembled violently as she reached inside her coat hoping the inside pocket hadn’t torn. Relief flooded her system as a finger brushed against the cool metal key she’d been searching for. Through the door and up the stairs she went, having another close call with the door to her home.

Lights were quickly thrown on, chasing away the dark of the night; and the door was bolted shut. Here in her apartment there were no surprises, only familiarity to be found, so why then did she still not feel safe?

It wasn’t a long walk to her bathroom, but by the time her bare feet were firmly planted on the cold plastic tile she had already ripped the tattered remains of her clothes clean from her body. Scalding water rushed out the shower head and poured over her, washing away the soap she continuously lathered on in a hopeless attempt to wash away the feeling of his touches, which burned more than the water, and that still lingered on her skin.

Rukia didn’t know how long she stayed under the water, her fingers and toes looked like raisins and prunes respectively, and her skin had taken on a salmon pink colouration. It had become clear that no matter how much soap she lathered on, his touch was not something she could just wash away. So, with every light in her apartment on, and dresser firmly pressed against her bedroom door barring entrance, she climbed into bed. There was little doubt in her mind that this would be a restless night. But cocooning herself in blankets brought with it a soothing warmth that gave way to temporary sense a safety.

The Next Day

Tired eyes scanned up and down the school’s empty hallways, paranoid that her attacker from the night before might be lingering just out of view. If it were an option she would’ve already been on her way home where she could barricade herself in her room and not worry as much, but no. Here she was anxiously waiting for Ichigo to show up out front of his office, all because Ishida-Sensei got wind of just how she hadn’t actually been helping Ichigo, the prim man couldn’t let one thing slide. Fed up with waiting she grabbed her bag from the floor and went to leave, detention was preferable to this, at least there’d be a teacher with her.

Jealously, frustration, anger, plus a whole host of other emotions flooded her system as she rounded a corner and found Ichigo pressed against the wall, kissing Dokugamine-Sensei. Something inside drove her to violently shove the nurse off of Ichigo, a move she quickly regretted as the woman turned to her with ill intent. Her wrist was quickly snatched by the aggravated woman, who began roughly pulling her down the hall towards the principal’s office, though she didn’t get far as Ichigo intervened aggressively taking hold of the nurse’s own wrist. 

“Let go of her Riruka” his voice was laced with hate, face contorted in anger, and those beautiful amber eyes held a fire that she’d never seen in them before. “Ichigo, you’re hurting me” the nurse cried, a shiver ran down Rukia’s spine at his one word reply “good.” As Dokugamine-Sensei let go of her, Ichigo did the same to the nurse, taking that hand and protectively, moving her behind him.

He looked ready to kill the woman in front of them and for her part Riruka looked absolutely terrified of him. Rukia though, surprisingly she didn’t share the same fear as the nurse, with his hand still gently placed on her arm she only felt safe as he all but threatened Riruka.

“Well now Nanao-Chan, seems we’ve stumbled upon quite a scene.” Kyoraku-San’s voice cut through the tense air surrounding the three of them. Ichigo’s hand dropped from her arm, but he stayed firmly in front of her “Shunsui-San” Ichigo respectfully addressed the principal, though the murderous edge still remained in his voice. “My my Ichigo-Kun, I haven’t seen you this riled up in a long time; now then why don’t one of you tell me just what happened.”

“It was the Kuchiki girl behind Kurosaki-Kun, she attacked me” awkwardly, Rukia stepped out from behind Ichigo, keeping her eyes on the floor to avoid the numerous sets on her. “Is this true Miss Kuchiki?” With eyes still on the floor she silently nodded her head yes, feeling just a bit of shame for her actions. “Now why would you do that?” He asked, the truth wasn’t an option so she had to settle for a meek shrug of her shoulder.

“It’s probably because she has a crush on-” “Enough” Ichigo barked at Riruka “what are you five, quite frankly I don’t think you understand the situation you’re in Riruka. Forcing your college up against a wall then trying to shove your tongue down their throat, I’m fairly certain that constitutes sexual assault.”

Though the atmosphere remained tense, all the pressure she’d been feeling disappeared in a moment, the jealously too. Flustered, Riruka tried her best to work out some sort of reasonable explanation for her actions.

“And here I thought I’d get to go home early for once” Shunsui-San sighed while tightening the pink floral tie around his neck. “Ichigo-Kun, Miss Kuchiki, you’re both free to go; Dokugamine-Sensei would you kindly follow me to my office.” Nanao trailed behind the pair as if to make sure Riruka didn’t try to run, that of course left her alone with Ichigo.

His mood hadn’t seemed to improve, fists were white knuckled, brow creased, and his lips in a firm line. “Ichigo I-” she started but he abruptly turned and began walking towards his office “go home Rukia!” he yelled back at her. As he rounded the corner and out of her view for the second time in two days tears leaked from her eyes. She didn’t know why, she didn’t feel sad, frustrated maybe? Whatever it was it wasn’t worth crying over, and yet here she was, slumped against a wall with her head buried in her hands, silently crying.

**…**

He had been such an ass yesterday. He should have done something other than just walk off like that, but he had been so upset. It was bad enough that Riruka had kissed him, it was worse that Rukia ended up seeing it, at least she’d saved him from the damn harpy. How aggressively he’d acted when Riruka grabbed her, that was probably more than just a little suspicious. And now here he was, bringing lunch for two, food made for a good apology right? Giving it to her, that was going to be a bit awkward.

He didn’t exactly have much time to dwell on how he was going to actually give it to her as he was fast approaching the large double doors that were the entrance. He’d barely begun pulling on the oversized metal handle when an unintelligible shout greeted his ears. Letting out a heavy sigh he quickly entered the building, his head swivelling around to find the source.

Maybe he should’ve been surprised to find it came from Rukia’s friends, but he wasn’t, since meeting her it seemed his life had begun revolving around the petite woman. “Alright, which one of you decided to give me a headache this early in the morning?” He asked the group on his approach. None of the responded, which was just a little weird, though Rangiku did look a little relieved at his presence. “Is everything alright, where’s Kuchiki?” Their strange behaviour had him surprisingly worried.

“Abarai, what’s with the welt on your face?” The large, deep red mark looked fresh and quite painful. “It was Rukia” Renji answered quietly, finally snapping out of whatever trance had held him. “Now why would she do that?” His voice was strained as he asked, temper threatening to flare up as he wondered what the boy in front of him had done to incur her wrath. “I-I don’t know, she just looked sad so I went to give her a hug, next thing I know she’s yelling not to touch her and then… she slapped me and ran off.”

Something was clearly off with her, there was yesterday, and now this. Something was up. “Alright, you five head to class, I’ll see if I can find her” it seemed Renji wasn’t a big fan of his plan “shouldn’t we help you find her” he quickly interjected. Ichigo quietly shook his head no “I’d much rather deal with one missing student than six, go to class and if I’m late just tell everyone I’m dealing with a student and to read today’s act till I get back.”

Renji didn’t seem to like his plan “she’s my friend, let me help” had it not be at an inappropriate time Renji’s determination might’ve brought out a smile in him. When he was eighteen he was a lot like the younger man, always wanting to lookout for those he cared about. “Fine” he relented “you take the roof, when I went to school here that’s where I liked to clear my head, it’s a good place to start; the rest of you get to class.” Renji immediately jumped into action, taking off for the nearby stairs while his compatriots lazily headed to class.

Promptly he began his search looking through places that offered solitude, yet turning up nothing. With class about to begin he headed for his office, the only places he hadn’t checked were the girl’s bathrooms, he could just ask Momo or Rangiku to do it for him though.

His keys weren’t a necessity as it seemed in frustration he’d forgotten to lock the door he night before, whatever, it saved him a few seconds… it also ended his search. There, in his chair, he found her. Knees pressed against her chest with arms wrapped around them, with raven hair obscuring her face.

Crossing the room he kneeled down in front of her, gingerly placing his hand on her knee. In an instant her head shot up and the sound of violent skin on skin contact echoed throughout the room. “If I wasn’t awake I am now” he groaned, rubbing his sore cheek. “Oh god, Ichigo” the realization of what she’d just done must’ve been terrifying, and while he knew he shouldn’t get in the habit of letting students get away with hitting him, there was clearly something more going on. “I know I was an ass yesterday but did you have to hit me so hard.”

His joke didn’t seem to lighten her mood, if anything the mention of the day before seemed to deepen the depression she was in. Carefully, very, very carefully he placed his hand back on her knee “what’s wrong Rukia?” She looked away and mumbled that it was nothing “the only times I’ve been hit that hard was when I was in a fight, something’s up.” “It’s nothing Ichigo” his persistence wasn’t going to pay off anytime soon, judging by her continued denial.

Unable to pull the information out of her, and with the bell ringing he had no other choice but to concede. “We should probably get to class” he noted, standing and grabbing his copy of Hamlet from the corner bookshelf. The only sound in the room though was from him, a quick glance showed that Rukia hadn’t moved from her spot on his chair.

“Oi midget, there’s something in my bag for you” the use of the moniker he’d given her might’ve ruffled some feathers, but he could hear her shuffle from her spot as he pretended to look for something else. “Ichigo” the way she said his name with a sigh made clear she wasn’t all that happy “I thought we agreed to leave each other alone” “we did” he confirmed “but I acted like a jackass yesterday, and I thought this might make up for it.”

“Would you do this for a student besides me?” “If I knew they had the same terrible eating habits as you… probably” he answered, a playful grin spreading across his lips, teasing her with its presence. Barely noticeable was the small upward tick of her lips, nothing close to a smile, but it was a sign that even if just for a second, he’d pushed through what was eating away at her.

Days Later

God, school had been over for already an hour and he was still here. Midterms were about a month and a half away and yet he could hear the shared whispers between students cursing the vile tests, if only they knew just how much their teacher’s hated them too. Some shared sympathy would be nice; especially with Uryu breathing down his neck to have a rough outline done by the end of today, that bastard.

There was a click as the handle on the office door was turned “don’t get your panties in a twist Ishida, I’ll have it done in a couple hours.” Silence… that was bad, Uryu would’ve insulted him by now. He swallowed hard, eyes glued to the paper in front of him, sweat trickling down his neck, the tip of his pencil breaking with the stress he was placing on it, then a cough, a light, feminine sounding cough.

“Please don’t be Nanao, please don’t be Nanao, please don’t be Nanao” he silently chanted, slowly looking up… it wasn’t her, it was something much, much worse. “Please tell me you’re both here because you’re having trouble with an assignment” “sorry Kurosaki-Sensei” Momo apologized “afraid you’re out of luck” Rangiku added.

“Whatever you’re about to ask me the answer is no” “but” “no” he quickly countered Rangiku. “Please Kurosaki-Sensei, hear us out” he turned to face Rangiku despite it being Momo who had spoken “you brought her to fuck with me didn’t you?” “No, this was her idea.” He looked back to Momo and gestured for her to take the chair across from him “this is about Rukia isn’t it?” Both the girls nodded in confirmation.

“You two do know I promised to make things easier and you know, stay out of her personal life” “please you brought her lunch like two weeks ago” Rangiku remarked “that was an apology lunch!” “An apology lunch, what the hell is that supposed to mean” retorting was made impossible as Momo broke them up quite easily “can you two just focus!”

The frustration evident in her voice… that garnered his attention; turning back to face the girl across from him he inquired “what’s she done to get you so worked up?”

“She’s just not herself” Momo answered “she stopped eating with our group, if we text her we get one word replies, Ran and I have gone over to her place several times and we never get past the door, she always has some kind of excuse, or says she’s too tired to do anything.” “She’s even quit her job” Rangiku continued.

“Look you’re her friends, if you can’t get through to her, what chance do you think I have?” This is not what he wanted, being worried about her led away from where he should be going. “Can you just try?” Momo asked, sliding a key across his desk “I’m assuming this will get me into her building?” She nodded, and he groaned “fuck, fine. But when this goes south I’m blaming the two of you understand?”

He really needed to unlearn where her apartment was, the plan had been to go home, eat something, then take an hour to work up the nerve to go over there, evidently his body had other plans. When he should’ve taken a right he went through the lights, every opportunity he had to turn around he had failed to take, and now, he was just staring at the door like an idiot. A million thoughts ran through his head, and none of them good. How was he even supposed to get her to talk anyway she could very well just shut the door in his face, damn this was stupid.

There was an instant pang of regret when his hand knocked against the door, completely unprepared and just a little scared at what her reaction would be. It wouldn’t be long as he could hear her, muffled by the door, cursing whoever she though he was calling them every name under the sun, her favourite by far being idiot.

The already battered door was dealt another blow as she carelessly threw it open, letting it slam into the wall. “What do you- … Ichigo?” “I’m guessing you were expecting a different idiot” he surmised. She didn’t answer, but much to his surprise she stepped aside and let him in without a word of fuss.

The usual pristine condition of her home had been tossed out the window. Garbage ranging from plastic bags and papers to even a solid black banana peel was strewn about like confetti while the coffee table held a small mountain of used bowls and plates, along with three mugs that were placed on the actual table, not a coaster! The couch fared no better missing one of the three cushions, while the two that remained were haphazardly thrown on with a fair amount of both hanging off the edge.

“So do you want to tell me why you’ve been avoiding your friends, to the point where they were desperate enough to ask me for help?” “I’ve just been busy” her answer was a poor attempt to cover the obvious, the way she looked away from him when answering coupled with the state of the room, how did she think she would get away with her lie. “Don’t try to bullshit me Rukia, I have eyes, I know you’re lying. You may be able to fool everyone else, but don’t you try to lie to me!”

She fidgeted, uncomfortable under his gaze, and perhaps put off by how he’d raised his voice, this was not the Rukia he knew. She should be yelling back, calling him an idiot and getting angry at how loud he’d just been, instead she just looked meek and sad. If he continued like this there was the chance he could just push her further into the funk she was in, a different approach would be needed. “Rukia” he spoke her name softly, as if it were a tangible thing that would shatter at the slightest touch “can you look at me, please?”

“I know something happened, people don’t just shut themselves off from the world without reason.” Her eyes drifted towards his as he spoke “I-” the rest of the words were caught in his throat as he asked himself if he was really going to go through with this, one look into those magnificent violet eyes so filled with hurt and confusion brought back his courage, yes, yes he was.

“I went through something like this once and I don’t want you to go down the path I went.” “You don’t know what I’m going through” she spat “probably not” he admitted “but I know what it’s like to suffer in silence.” Reaching into his back pocket he pulled out the old leather wallet within and handed it to her “Ichigo why are you giving me this, money isn’t going to fix my problem.” “Just open it” he gently ordered.

In a clear plastic sleeve resided an old photo of him, five years younger, and in his arms was a three year old boy, with matching hair and smile. “That’s Kazui” he explained as she stared with shock at the photo “you… you have a son?” “I had a son, a drunk driver T-boned us; he would’ve been eight this year.”

“Why are you showing me this, and now of all times?” “Because after he died I did what you’re doing now, I cut myself off from my friends, my family, and my wife, at a time when I could’ve used the support. I’m not trying to diminish what you’re going through or compare our pain, I just want you to know that I understand what you’re doing, but know it’s not going to help you. Doing this cost me my marriage, I don’t want you pushing everyone away and losing the people closest to you.”

For a while they just stood there, him looking at her while she looked sadly at the photo in her hands. “You know we’re really bad at staying away from each other” her response threw him off and worried him, had his plea only pushed her further down this depressive hole she was in? “Rukia I-” “thank you Ichigo” she cut him off, throwing her arms around him and burying her face into his chest, wetting his shirt with her tears. He smiled down at her, his own arms wrapping around her slender frame.

When they finally separated her eyes were red and puffy, and his shirt held a large wet spot, but they were both smiling. “There’s one more thing before I go” he said after taking his wallet back “these are for you” from his key ring he slipped two off and placed them in the palm of her hand “I had these made for you a while ago, if you ever need something just come over okay.” “What if I need something now?” She asked surprising him “what would that be?” “Can you stay here tonight?”

There was no way in hell the appropriate answer to that was yes, but her eyes were silently pleading for him to agree. “Okay” his answer just barely above a whisper.

It wasn’t late, just passed seven, but he let her drag him to her room all the same. It had fared better than the living room, the furniture, aside from the unmade bed, was characteristically spotless. The only worrisome aspect was the sheer amount of blankets that were scattered on her bed and the nearby floor, though he now knew where that couch cushion was.

“Could you… could you turn around please?” Awkwardness spread throughout the air, her cheeks were flushed red and he was sure his matched “Ichigo” she said his name drawing his attention back before motioning for him to turn around. “R-right” he stuttered out while doing as instructed.

It was hard not to think about the fact she was getting undressed just a foot or two behind him, or that it was surprisingly very audible, seriously who knew zippers could be so damn loud. When he was finally allowed to turn around he was expecting to still have the ability to speak, in just the button up shirt she’d stolen months ago she was stunning. Sure he had seen her like this when he’d been taking care of her and he had been blown away then, but she’d been sick and he had been paying much more attention to her health than state of dress.

“Are you going to get comfortable?” Taking anything off seemed like a bad idea to him “ugh… no.” That didn’t sit well with her “I’m not going to be the only one dressed like this” she asserted, marching over to him and yanking the tie from his neck. “Okay guess the tie was a bit overkill” but she didn’t stop there, tiny hands grabbed at his shit un-tucking it and ripping it open sending the buttons flying.

“Hey calm down, there’s no need to ruin my shirt” “sorry” she apologized, flustered and embarrassed by her actions “I just didn’t want to be the only one so exposed.” A strange choice of words, but like his shirt he shrugged it off. “Please don’t ask me to lose the pants… Rukia?” She walked towards him, hand outstretched and unresponsive to his voice.

Her touch was soft and her hands were cold; with where they were placed he was acutely aware of what had grabbed her attention. “You have scars” she whispered, her hand still caressing the many imperfections in his skin “they’re from the accident, a bunch of glass turned my side into mincemeat.” His hand covered hers and pulled it away “it’s alright” he told her before she could apologize “you look really tired, let’s get some sleep.” “Okay” she quietly agreed, taking his hand yet again and leading him the few feet to her bed.

It was weird, holding her as she drifted off to sleep, feeling her body become less and less tense as time passed, her breathing become slow and even. There were too many things he should be worried about, but it was hard to hold onto them when he was holding onto her. With his nose buried in the crook of her neck, taking in the wonderful scent of lavender that radiated from her it was easy to slip away from everything, at this moment only the two of them existed, and that was alright with him.

Author’s Note: I know I’m not the type of writer who leaves one of these at the end or beginning of every chapter, specifically naming people they’d like to thank, hell I even read one where they did these weird skits with the characters at the beginning and end of the chapter where they talked about it, kinda weird but power to you.

I wanted to leave something here though just to say thank you to all who read this and those who leave a review (I’ve read all 16 in case anyone has been wondering, also dude who left a review as guest, I hope this is less confusing.) I love all of them, I smile every time I read one, my favourites though I think have all been left by one person, they’re really long and they like to speculate where the story is going and gush on the characters. They’re so long that in the e-mail I get notifying me about the review, usually you can read the full thing, but they’re so long I only get like half and it tells me if I want to read the full thing I have to go to the website, I fucking love that.

Anyway I’m going to stop artificially inflating my word count and just once again say thank you, I used to cringe at authors leaving things like this but now I completely get it, it makes them happy and they want to share it. I never thought I’d be incredibly proud to write romance fan fiction, or that it would be one of the most rewarding thing’s I’ve ever done, but here we are. So thank you all and I hope you continue to enjoy my story. Also I really love the speculation please continue with that.


	8. I'm Gonna Get Over This Someday

“Let me get this straight, she’s been here every night since then… Ichigo are you out of your mind!?” Out of all the friends he could talk to why had he thought Tatsuki would be the cool level headed voice to steer him in the right direction? “It hasn’t been every night, it’s just been most.” Even he had to admit that was a really weak defense, what was he going to do though turn her away in the middle of the night, and if he did Tatsuki would probably be scolding him for that instead.

From her position on the loveseat next to him her eyes raised in suspicion “is sleeping all you two do when she’s here?” It was rare for him to get genuinely angry at his oldest friend but her question was pushing through well-established lines between them. “Don’t go there Tatsuki” his response came through gritted teeth, his shoulders tense and he hunched forward in agitation.

Clearly she wasn’t satisfied with his answer, the impatient tapping of her fingers against the leather arm proof enough. Instead she chose to switch tactics and began pleading with him “Why are you doing this, you could be throwing your life away for all you know.” “You don’t think I know that!” He aggressively countered “but you know what I’ve gotten out of this life so far Tatsuki, a failed marriage and a dead son.”

Those words had spilled out in a fit of frustration, and yet that didn’t make them any less honest. “I’ve lost my mom, my son, and I pushed away the woman I thought I’d spend the rest of my life with, it’s like a thunderstorm that just won’t let up, Rukia makes it stop. I’m helping her because it’s the right thing to do, and because it makes me feel better. That may be selfish but as long as she asks for my help I’ll be there, consequences be damned!”

Like him Tatsuki was never one to be emotional, maybe that's why they were choosing to let things end there after such a short time. “Just do me a favour, don’t do anything dumb, I don’t need you more depressed than you already are.”

He just scoffed at her words “when have I ever done anything dumb?” “All the time, you’re the best at making the worst decisions, remember when you waited three months to ask out Orihime after I told you to; Uryu almost beat you to it.” How could he forget it, the two of them hadn’t spoken for months afterwards, never had he thought a girl would come in between him and a friend.

“This is different” he was quick to point out “there’s no Uryu this time.” His joke brought a smile to Tatsuki “just make sure you’re careful” she told him as the elevator doors closed and he was left to walk the short distance back to his home. Maybe Tatsuki had been the right choice, then again maybe he just needed to tell someone and hear the smallest bit of approval.

If her pattern kept up than within the hour he could expect Rukia at his door, it seemed like every day she was coming just a bit earlier. The first night had been unexpected, waking up in the middle of the night to get a glass of water and finding her asleep on the couch tossing and turning while murmuring “no” and “don’t touch me” frantically in her sleep had been a shocking affair. When he’d finally summoned the nerve to wake her up she’d clung to him, shaking like a leaf. He’d carried her to bed with him, and in the morning she was gone and he was left to wonder if it had been some strange dream, she hadn’t acted any different in class.

He might’ve been able to brush it off had it not happened a second time, the murmuring had progressed into something much louder jolting him from his sleep. Like the night before he carried her to bed, keeping his arms wrapped tight around her. Her attempt at sneaking out the morning after hadn’t gone quite so smoothly and even in his groggy state he’d managed to convince her to go back to sleep. 

Despite the beliefs of certain short individuals he wasn’t a fool; his blood boiled knowing that someone had attacked her in such a manner. There was no good time to bring it up and even if there was he felt it wasn’t his place to. When she was ready she would tell him. For now he saw it as his job was to provide somewhere she could be safe.

That was why after the second night he made sure to be awake when she showed. It was awkward suggesting they skip the phase where she spent time on the couch, but she slept through the night. And as much as it shamed him to admit it, he soon found himself eagerly anticipating her arrival every night.

Even now he was on edge, constantly checking the time on his phone instead of focusing on the book in his hand. When it seemed he just couldn’t take the waiting any longer there it was, the subtle whine of the hinges as the door was pushed open. The book he had barely touched swiftly cast upon the coffee table, his phone acting as an impromptu book mark.

A few deep breaths and he was calm… ish. “Are you tired?” He asked not moving from his spot and hoping his voice wasn’t as shaky as he felt. “Very” she replied, sluggishly walking into view; clad in sweats that matched with a navy blue University of Tokyo sweater, another garment of his she’d laid claim to, not that he particularly minded.

“Want to head to bed then?” The offer was turned down by a shake of her head “I need to talk to you about something.” She sat down beside him, not an inch between them and yet she refused to meet his gaze, her eyes instead focused on the hands clasped firmly together and neatly sitting in her lap. “I think I owe you an explanation as-” “Rukia” he interrupted “you don’t owe me anything.” “Thank you” she said finally meeting his gaze.

There was a sadness in her eyes that made him want to pull her to him and never let go, but he shouldn’t, not till she was done. “I… I think I want to tell you” she amended. Her eyes veered from his and hands broke apart and began nervously fiddling with the sweater’s hem. He placed his hand on top of hers’, lightly squeezing it in encouragement.

“I was attacked” she whispered as if feeling shame for the admission, though he wanted to speak he kept quiet and waited for her, letting her be in control. “I had just left the club and was waiting for my bus, he came up behind and grabbed me… touched me… I got away though.” With those last words she once again looked to him, her voice and eyes filled with a hope that had him wondering.

He racked his brain for a proper response but how do you do that on the spot with a topic this heavy. In the end he had to say something and honesty was the best option. “I don’t quite know if I’m phrasing this right, but had you not it wouldn’t change how I look at you.” Violet eyes were wide with shock and shimmered in the lamp light as pools of tears threatened to spill forth “here comes the water works” he gently teased as she buried her head into his chest. “Shut up carrot top” her muffled reply bringing a smile to his face “that must have taken you weeks to come up with; I don’t know how much I like the name change” “shut up berry boy, you’ll take what I give you and you’ll like it.”

With her head still pressed to his chest his fingers naturally took to her hair, gently running through her raven tresses, a content sigh escaped her lips as his other began running up and down the small of her back “thank you Ichigo.”

They weren’t together for long but as she pulled away he was desperate for the heat of her body to return, his smile faded though not for long as she stood and took his hand. “Come on, I’m tired” she said while trying to pull him from the couch. Her movements were weak and her eyelids drooped in exhaustion “you’re too heavy” she complained and yet knowing her she wouldn’t give in, so he did.

While Rukia managed to fall asleep rather quickly he was left awake, the only sound was her quiet breathing. His hand rested on her stomach and raised ever so slightly with each gentle breath she took; her hand rested overtop of his, their fingers loosely intertwined. If ever they were to be caught, there was nothing he could regret.

The Morning After

The bed was cold and lonely when he woke, Rukia absent from his arms. Crimson cotton sheets formed a pool around his waist as he sat up, slowly coming to. “Rukia!” With no response he slipped from the bed and past his shirt on the ground; coffee was what he needed right now, it always helped to drive away the fuzz that clouded his mind each morning.

Leaning against the counter, coffee in hand, eyes on said coffee he struggled to reason out as to why would she leave, hadn’t they moved past that at this point? Still after last night it’s not that he could blame her, coming out like that would take a toll on anyone, perhaps she just needed some time to herself.

That was the most likely answer, and that was the one he settled on, it wasn’t like she was there to argue another reason anyways. He missed that, it was lonely here without her. Sure their mornings together were never long, usually waking up and sharing a cup of coffee while making forced small talk about the day ahead of them; neither of them were morning people.

“What’s with the sour face berry boy?” There she was in another of his shirts, wrinkled from use with sleeves rolled to accommodate her smaller arms. “Shit, fuck” he cursed as coffee flew from the mug falling shy of hitting him and splashing harmlessly on the hardwood. “Don’t do that, I don’t need a burn to go with the scars” “it’s not my fault, you should learn to pay attention” she countered. “What I should do is put a bell around your neck so that way I know where you are at all times.” “Please, you know what would happen if ever tried.”

He couldn’t help it, nothing funny had been said and yet laughter still spilled from him “did you hit your head getting out of bed?” “No, no” he assured her after calming down “it’s just I thought you’d left, and then… I don’t know. I think I’ve just gotten used to you being here bickering with me.”

Her pale cheeks turned a rosy red at his words; now might’ve been the best time to leave before anything too mushy left his mouth. “I’ll clean up here then hop in the shower, if you want to make yourself something before I take you home, go ahead.” As he set to work quickly mopping up the spilled coffee with some paper towels and his feet Rukia nervously shuffled back and forth “would it be okay if I left from here today? I brought my uniform with me” she told him indicating to her backpack by the front door “it’s unfair of me to keep having you drive me home in the morning and…” she dragged on “there’s something I wanted to ask you.”

Her thoughtfulness made his heart skip a beat “it should be fine as long as we don’t leave at the same time” he answered after a moment, while taking time to thoughtfully, and playfully scratch his chin “how about I make us something to eat and you talk.” He wasn’t exactly giving her another option as he grabbed the frying pan that hung over the kitchen’s island.

“So what exactly was it you wanted to ask me?” The was a minute before she finally answered him “how did you cope with it?” That hadn’t exactly been what he was expecting, and this was a question he couldn’t answer while cooking. Shutting off the oven’s burner he turned to face her “I ran off to another country and became a respected musician… and when that didn’t work I talked to someone.” “Did it work?” “it’s helped” he admitted “it’s not a quick process but things are easier now… it’s not easy it’s just easier” he clarified. “I don’t blame myself as much as I used to and I sleep better; have you been thinking of therapy?”

She nodded silently “I need help working through this; it’s just so expensive” “a good doctor isn’t cheap” he agreed “but I might know someone who can help, I’ll talk to them today for you if you’d like?” “I’d appreciate that” she told him with a smile.

Her smile was infectious and brought warmth to a place inside he’d long though frozen, if there was a time to ask, it was now. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask as well” his heart pounded and hands were white knuckled as he gripped the counter top preparing for rejection, or at least something along those lines. “I’ve been thinking, you’ve spent basically every night for the past two weeks here, and maybe I shouldn’t be but I’ve been enjoying having you here, despite knowing what brings you here… would you want to, or maybe consider moving in?”

There was silence between the two as she just stared at him with shock which soon transitioned into a look of anger. “You know I quit the club, don’t you?” She accused “is that what this is about, you don’t think I’ll be able to make ends meet on my own do you? I don’t need your pity.” He demeanour did a one eighty real quickly, but he push onward with intent to clarify his words “I knew you quit a while ago, Rangiku told me the day I went to check on you” he admitted “had they not I would’ve figured it out anyways, your marks have been exceptional for a while now, you’re on your way to surpassing Momo and being top of your class. I’m asking you to move in because I like having you here, Rukia, I want you here.”

“You could get in a lot of trouble” she pointed out, the anger already faded, replaced by a small and gentle smile “I’m already in over my head, it just means we have to be careful.” She shuffled to his side and pressed against him “I’ll get my own room right?” He laughed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders “considering how we’re sleeping now I doubt you’ll use it, but yeah.”

Some Time Later

There had been a lot of difficult conversations in his life and this was about to be another to add to the list; probably why he had held off on it till the end of the day. “Just a minute” a very feminine voice called from the other side of the office door. “Well now, I believe this is the first time you’ve visited me” Orihime greeted him, trademark goofy smile in full force.

He must be really obvious with his emotions because he didn’t even get a chance to speak before her mood shifted. Her grin seemed a little less care free and an eyebrow was raised in question “this isn’t a friendly visit is it?” “You don’t know how much I wish it was.”

She stepped aside and he solemnly marched his way in. The space was more or less what he had expected with a vase of chrysanthemums sitting neatly on her ebony desk; a few motivational posters were scattered across the pale blue walls along with a degree in psychology from Kyoto University.

The chair across from hers’ was surprisingly comfortable and did well to make him feel comfortable and welcome; he really needed one of these for his office. “What was it you needed?” She asked taking her seat “well it’s not for me” he clarified “one of my students has been having a tough time and I just thought you might know someone they could talk to.”

“The student who needs help, they wouldn’t happen to be the one who pushed Riruka off of you would they?” She inquired “how many people know about that?” “Just me, Nanao told me the real reason she was suspended, according to her you looked ready to kill Riruka.” He sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck “a student saw so…” “are you sure it wasn’t because Rukia saw it?”

This required tact, cunning, and the ability to unwaveringly lie to his ex-wife… oh god he was so fucked. “What are you talking about?” He asked, managing to keep his cool “you can play dumb all you want Ichigo, but I know jealous stares when I see them… plus I do still talk to Tatsuki” he scowled “I’m never talking to that woman again.” “Don’t be like that, she was just explaining why one of your students looked at me like I was the devil incarnate.”

He sighed and leant back in his seat still marvelling at just how comfortable it was, it somehow helped to make this easier for him. “She needs help and she can’t exactly afford it, if you know someone willing to lie and tell her they’re taking her on pro bono I can pay them.” “Ichigo no therapist would agree to that, if she were to find out it would destroy the trust built between them, your heart’s in the right place though.”

Despite her words however it appeared as if the auburn haired beauty’s smile only grew “I luckily do know one person who specializes in trauma that would take her on for free… after all there is a reason I work in a school.”

There were two problems to what she was suggesting, the first being how in the hell was he supposed to convince his ex-girlfriend to seek counselling from his ex-wife. Secondly how did she know what kind of help Rukia needed? “First how do you know its trauma, and secondly how am I supposed to pitch this to her?”

“I’m a trained professional, I know the signs; and as for how to convince her, you’ll just have to assure her I know what I’m doing.”

Of course it would have to be him who faced Rukia and suggested this, he could already imagine the argument and subsequent headache that were going to come with it, what had he done to disserve this? “I do hope you’ve been supporting her through this” “I’ve been doing what I can” his response was apprehensive and by the way she pressed her questioning she must have sensed it “what exactly have you been doing?”

There was a glint in her eyes, as if she already knew but just wanted him to say it. “She’s been staying with me for a couple weeks; I think she feels safe with me around” hopefully his assumption didn’t make him look too full of himself. “Considering how you handled Riruka I’m not surprised, you could have gone a bit easier on her though.” “I wasn’t exactly thinking straight you know” “I figured” Orihime playfully responded.

For a little while they talked, he caught her up on the strange situation he had found himself in. “I can’t imagine what it must have been like opening the door and finding her there.” Orihime commented as he finished “honestly I don’t know how I managed to get through that day, and well every day honestly, it’s just the weirdest and worst situation.”

There was a brief pause in the conversation before he decided to take it back to why he was there in the first place. “Do you think you’ll be able to help her through this?” His sudden question caused her smile to falter “Ichigo, I know I will” the smile had vanished, and he could tell by the slight frown and knit together eyebrows that had taken root she may have been insulted by his question.

“Sorry, I’m just don’t want her to end up like me.” “Which you would that be?” She asked “the one teacher in this school who sets up individual meetings to help guide students through problems in their work, or would it be the man who’s risking his job and perhaps more to help someone he cares about overcome a difficult chapter in their life? Either way if she turns out like you I think she’ll be fine.”

His cheeks were aflame with embarrassment at her words “you know what I meant” “I did” she agreed “but you got through it and remained the same good man I married, you just need a little confidence in her.”

“You know, I’m smart enough to know when I’m being worked on” he said, a small smile growing “not exactly what I came here for.” “I thought it might help you” she said playing up an innocent act, a trick he knew well as it was one of Rukia’s favourites.

“I think it’s time for you to head home, you have some convincing to do” he nodded apprehensively in agreement, the evening ahead of him wasn’t what he’d call fun. With a sullen resolve he rose from the seat and headed to the door, “Ichigo” Orihime called to him before he could leave “I won’t say anything if you two chose to… well you know.” Did, did she really just give him the okay to date his student/ex-girlfriend… this required therapy for him to process, and not from her. 

Had it not been for her final words and the conversation ahead of him and the eventual argument it would lead to he might’ve actually left in a good mood, as it stood though at least his soul felt just a little lighter.

The lock was like thunder as he bolted the door behind him, painfully aware of the set of violet eyes watching him from the couch. “You look terrible” Rukia pointed out “thanks” he muttered while tossing his keys into a small bowl by the door. “What crawled up your ass an-” the words stopped and she looked away from him, maybe it was shame, maybe it was embarrassment, but it was not like the woman he cared so much for “and died” he finished for her.

“Can you just be normal and argue with me, and fight with me, and get mad at me, it’ll make this next part a little easier” he told her while unceremoniously plopping down on the love seat beside the couch; too afraid to sit next to her and weather the storm that was sure to follow the news.

“You did talk to your friend right?” He took a very, very deep breath before answering “I did, except I forgot to tell you that my friend was actually my ex-wife. Her recommendation was that she treat you because she’ll do it for free, but also because she’s the only person she knows who specializes in trauma. She also knows we were together because Tatsuki told her, she also knows you’re going to be moving in, because I told her that… please be gentle with me.”

“I-I don’t even know where to start” Rukia said, utter disbelief thickly coating her words “is that why she was constantly looking at me in the halls?” He couldn’t hold back anymore, snorting before succumbing to laugher. “This isn’t funny Ichigo, this is really serious!” There was that anger he’d asked for “more people finding out means more ways we can get caught; and how am I supposed to have your ex-wife as my therapist, that would be beyond awkward.”

Somewhere in her rant she’d taken to her feet and marched over to him, the coldest glare she could muster etched onto her face; its effects though lost on him because he’d always thought she was cute when she was angry. “This is serious Ichigo” her words paired well with a flick to his forehead, like a fine chardonnay with a fillet mignon.

“I know it’s serious which is why you should take her help, she’s good at what she does.” “I can’t believe you’re taking her side!” Rukia yelled which only confused him “what are you talking about, what side?” “The side that wants your ex to go rooting around inside my head; tell me this isn’t some kind of game you’re playing with me to win her back. Taking care of a distraught, broken girl to get closer to her; I bet you still love her don’t you.”

Where her distrust and hatred came from he didn’t know, but her words cut deep. He rose from his seat, towering over her and barely keeping the rage that bubbled under his skin in check. “Oh course I still love her she’s the mother of my son! We didn’t divorce because we fell out of love, it was because I saw too much of our son in her and became a distant closed off mess, I couldn’t be in the same room with her hell I couldn’t be in the same room as my family.”

The rage subsided when he saw her fear stricken face, and though he continued it was with a much more calm and collected tone. “Things are better now, I’m better now, I worked through it but if I could go back I wouldn’t. There’s a pain I feel most days that could be called a hole in my heart, when I’m with her, or my family that pain remains, but with you… with you Rukia it’s gone. That’s something you can do that no one else can. When I tell you to take her help it’s not some sick twisted game I want to play with you, it’s because she might be the one person I know I can absolutely trust with you.” 

Her hand slowly reached for his, fingers laced together as he watched her blink away the wetness in her eyes. “I’m sorry” it was barely a whisper, you could be a foot away and think she only moved her lips, but he heard it. “If you don’t want me here I’d understand” With a roll of his eyes he bent down and placed a chaste kiss on her forehead.

“You’re scared and going through something tough, did you mean those words?” “No” she responded “then why don’t I make some dinner, we can get your things tomorrow, okay?”

**...**

Though there had been countless fond memories made here it had been her dream for a while to finally leave this accursed apartment, but not even in her wildest and weirdest dreams had she thought it would be under circumstances like these, but here she was.

Ichigo, despite her words yesterday, was right beside her on the musty and slightly green shag carpet, surrounded by piles of clothes and other small items and was helping the best he could… there was a lot of correcting she had to do. “Haven’t you done this before?” She asked already emptying a second box “yeah, but it was all my stuff and I didn’t exactly care what condition it ended up in.” “I don’t care how you treat your shit, but could you have a little respect for my things.” He might have found her tastes in reading material a little off putting but seriously who lines the inside of a box with manga then fills it with tea towels, it was absolutely absurd.

“Wait Rukia don’t!” he shouted as she overturned it and let the contents spill onto the floor, what was he so worried about anyway she didn’t mind a few bent pages, it wasn’t like they were his precious plays. Evidently that wasn’t his concern as the books were shoved aside and the towels carefully pulled apart till she spied the off white frame hidden within.

“I probably should’ve said something sooner” he admitted carefully plucking it from the cocoon. She watched as his eyes lingered on it; the glass had spider-webbed but through it you could still clearly see the three faces held beneath, captured in that moment forever.

“The man, that’s your brother right?” She silently nodded a quick yes, anxious to know if that was it or if there was more. “How tall is he?” The question surprised her, who the hell asks something like that? “About your size… why?” “No reason, just the difference between your sister and him is substantially less than the one between us, guess she got all the genes for height.” A fucking short joke, why did she like this man?!

“We can pick up a new frame on our way home” he said while carefully handing it to her; it was because of the sweet caring man hidden beneath all the short jokes and scowls, that’s why she liked him.

“Why’d you line the box with my manga?” “So that the picture didn’t shift or get knocked around” he answered with a shrug “also there was a chance they would get damaged and there would be less romance novels on my shelf.” “Don’t you have a copy of Romeo and Juliet” she quickly pointed out, though that was only met with another shrug of his shoulders “I said less not none.”

With her victory unsure she let go of the issue and began repacking the books, taking extra precautions with them, they were ending up on that shelf whether he wanted them or not. 

“Why don’t you ever talk about it?” “Talk about what?” “Your childhood, I don’t really know a whole lot about you” he pointed out. “You know the important stuff” “I barely know what happened after you ran away, I want to know about before.”

She sighed, of course he wanted to know more about her. It wasn’t like he was someone who would let her weasel her way out of this either, it was going to be now or it was going to be later but he wouldn’t relent. He just wanted to know her, it was sweet.

“I never knew my parents, they died shortly after I was born; my sister never told me how whenever the subject came up she refused to talk about it. I was still a baby when she met my brother; according to Hisana we bounced from shelter to shelter, she would work odd jobs here and there trying to get enough money to support the both of us. She told me there was a time where she considered giving me up so I could have a better life; that was until she met my brother. His family was doing a public relations stunt, visiting and giving shelters money; he used to say it was love at first sight. They got married pretty quickly; his family wasn’t thrilled, they thought he was taking in a couple of street urchins”

“My childhood might be a little different than what you imagine, my brother’s money did mean that if I wanted something chances were I got it, there was an image I had to uphold though. I went to a private school with other rich kids; there was a constant string of dance and music recitals and even though I had toys I rarely got to play with them. At the time I didn’t mind, my brother and sister made sure to attend every one and were supportive in a way many of the other parents weren’t; if you got rid of the money and all the trappings that came with it, we were just like any other family.”

“That changed when my sister became sick and we moved to Tokyo to have access to better doctors; as she got worse my brother fell more and more in line with what the family expected of him. Expectations for me grew and I was put in etiquette classes; I wasn’t allowed to hang out with my friends anymore and at the same time it seemed no one had any time for me. Hisana was too sick and if he wasn’t at her bedside my brother was working.”

Arms encircled her from behind as Ichigo pulled her onto his lap, his thumb drew small circles in her back while orange hair tickled her cheek as he buried his head in the crook of her neck; his hot breath sending a shiver up her spine.

As painful as it was to recall these memories it also felt good, like there was an oppressive weight finally being lifted, the burden no longer hers alone to bear.

“After she passed things only got worse my brother wouldn’t look at me, wouldn’t talk to me, I was left in the care of the servants.” “What made you leave?” Ichigo asked “I was told that after my eighteenth birthday I would be wed, and that a suitable husband would be found for me.” “What the fuck! Who does that?!” Though it was cute and heart-warming how worked up he had gotten Rukia winced at the volume “calm down carrot top I’m right here” her hand found his and gave it a gentle squeeze to emphasize her words.

“How’d you get out?” He asked “I left in the middle of the night with just a duffle bag and some money I’d squirreled away and came back here. I knew it would be the first place my brother checked but Karakura is large enough that I can hide from him. It’s a risk, even now that I’m an adult I’m sure that if he found me he’d try and take me back, even by force if it’s necessary.” “Why would you come back then?” “Renji was here and he was the only person I knew I could rely on; Hisana as well. Besides I never would’ve met you if I hadn’t.”

His arms tightened around her “saying things like that, it’s going to make me think you care.” His hot breath tickled her neck and sent her heart into overdrive “what makes you think I don’t berry boy.”

“What happened when you got here?” “You sure are nosey you know that” “I like knowing about you” Ichigo fired back.

“Renji’s father used to work for my brother, therefore it was deemed fine for me to associate with him; we were pretty close. So, the first thing I did when I got to Karakura was look him up; his family took me in after they learnt why I left. I didn’t plan on staying with them but it was like I had a family again… and I might’ve ended up dating Renji.” “Wait… is that why when I came to pick you up he looked like he wanted to tear my head off?” “Yeah” she answered with a bit of a laugh “he likes to act like we’re still together.”

“Why aren’t you?” “Ichigo, I don’t think that’s something I should tell you” “look, if you two... you know… just skip over that part.” “We didn’t have sex; I just don’t need you getting in trouble for trying to exact some form of retribution in my name. I’ve forgiven him and moved on from it.” She could feel the rumble in his chest as he silently laughed “guess you know me pretty well midget; I promise, you’ll have nothing to worry about.”

She knew he wasn’t one to go back on hi word and yet she still debated on telling him. It was a pretty personal affair; and yet there was still that one tiny voice in her head pushing her to spill it and keep no secrets from him.

“After a few months Renji and I were attached at the hip, we went everywhere together and even shared his bed; as corny as it sounds I thought I had found my future husband. Of course I was still worried my brother would take me away but Renji always assured me I had nothing to worry about; I even started to believe him. The Christmas before I turned sixteen I thought it would nice if I were his present.”

She could feel his heart pounding away and his grip somehow managed to tighten further. “I took a day off of school and spent the afternoon setting things up and preparing myself, when he got home I was waiting naked in our room. Just before we were about to… you know… he got a call. He was working a part-time job and told me he needed to take it because it was his boss, but he left the room to take it. I got a bit impatient and thought about teasing him while he was on the phone; that’s when I learnt why Renji was so confident we didn’t have to worry about my brother… because he was talking to him.”

“From almost the moment I showed up at his house Renji had been reporting on me to my brother in an attempt to earn his approval. It hadn’t been much, my grades and how I was doing mostly; but my brother was paying him to do it. You’d never think it’s possible to feel more naked than to literally be naked, but it’s possible.”

“After that I confronted him, he said it was for our future, that he was taking all he could from my brother while not giving him that much in return; I told him if he was doing it for me he would’ve told me. He gave me the money, it was a lot; said he didn’t want it if it meant the end of us, but it was over the moment I heard him say my brother’s name; within two weeks I was in this apartment and looking for a job.” 

“I know you’re going to ask why I stayed friends with him after a stunt like that; the truth is I was scared I would lose everyone, Renji was the one that introduced me to the gang. I stayed quiet about it and pretended everything was fine and eventually it just was. I moved on and forgave him; we went back to being just friends. There are times he’s a bit inappropriate and acts like we’re still together, but it’s never been something I can’t handle.”

“You’re going to keep your promise right?” “For you” his teeth grinding together as the words came out. She wriggled around in his grip, something he didn’t seem to care too much for till she faced him. It was her turn to wrap her arms around him and with eyes closed placed a gentle kiss upon his forehead; a smile that she could only describe as sickeningly sweet graced her lips as she pulled away and her eyes found his and drank deeply from the amber pools.

Her slender fingers brushed aside a stray orange lock that dared interrupt her view. “Ichigo” his name flew effortlessly off her tongue “thank you for listening and thank you for being here; I don’t know what I’d do without you.” 


	9. House Fire

This was supposed to be a fun afterschool event for the three of them. Picking out their dresses for the dance and critiquing each other’s choice of dates seeing as none of them got to go with who they actually wanted to. So why was it that Rangiku was the only one seemingly having any measure of fun. “Can’t we just admit defeat and not go, the dance is in a week; we’ve already been in six stores and found nothing.”

At the moment all Rukia wanted to do was go along with Momo’s plan, she wouldn’t have to dance with Renji and could ogle Ichigo while torturing him with an endless string of Chappy re-runs while feeling slightly guilty the whole time; honestly almost a perfect evening.

“But Momo, what would Toshiro say” Rangiku jokingly chided “that he’s happy he doesn’t have to go to a dance with his big sister.” Though she was tired Momo’s response inspired laughter in her, and Rangiku.

“You can’t possibly believe that can you?” Rangiku asked “Momo that boy puts you on a pedestal; I’m sure he’s more than excited to go with you” Rukia added. “You really think so?” Momo asked them, pep returning to her voice. With a nod from both her and Rangiku Momo’s spirit was reinvigorated and Rukia suddenly found herself helpless to Momo’s whims and could only groan as she was pulled into yet another dress shop.

Bright pink lights and loud pop music greeted the trio as they wandered in. While the other girls seemed unbothered by it to Rukia it was a glaring reminder of the life she’d left behind.

Rows upon rows of expensive looking dresses hung neatly on cheap plastic hangers and nothing that she would even consider; too long, too short, too frilly, too sparkly, you name it she had a problem with it. None of this was a problem though, in fact as she made her way through the rows of disappointing dresses her sour mood faded and a smirk played at her lips; bothering Ichigo seemed back on the menu and that was alright with her. “RUKIA!” And just like that Rangiku had to go and throw a wrench in her plans yet again.

She raced to her friend’s side; hoping to halt the scene she knew would develop. “Look look look” Rangiku chanted while pushing her to a mirror and dangling a dress in front of her “it matches your eyes.” Of course Ran was right, and of course the dress had to be perfect; falling just below her knees with sleeves that left only her hands exposed and a shallow V cut for the neck that hinted at what was held below.

“You’ll be sure to catch his eye with that” “Ran I don’t want Renji looking at me longer than he has too.” “I wasn’t talking about Renji, I overheard Ichigo agree to chaperon the dance; he’ll take one look at you in this number and won’t be able to keep his hands to himself.” “He’ll have to if he wants to keep his job.” It was only after she made the comment did the realization come that it gave way too much away; enough to turn Rangiku into a shrieking fan-girl. “I want all the details now.”

The monster had been unleashed and the only way of calming the beast was to sate its hunger “we’ve just been talking.” The small lie didn’t seem enough, even as she searched for a dressing room Rangiku was hounding her with question after question. How often were they talking, what were they talking about, and her personal favourite wasn’t even a question; it was just Ran insinuating that there was more than just talking going on, which she was indeed right on, but she didn’t need to know that.

“For the last time Ran he’s just helping me look for a new job that’s it.” That was the only true piece of information she relinquished, and it was a half-truth at that. He had helped her land a job at a café through some connections; she did have to wait for the fall to start when one of the employees would be leaving to study abroad. Till then she had her savings, about a fourth of the money he’d given her, and a fair amount from the couple who’d taken over her lease to leave the furniture; and here she was spending some of it on a dress she’d probably wear once just to keep up appearances.

Having to rely on Ichigo even just for a bit was a real hit to her pride, even if he told her not to worry about it, even if she did more than her fair share of the chores to make up for it, she craved a way to contribute that didn’t leave her feeling like a house wife or live in maid.

“Come on Rukia just go for him, I want something juicy I can sink my teeth into… and you two were cute together too I guess.” “Gee thank Ran, I’ll be sure to rearrange my personal life into something that provides you with endless entertainment.” “Really, Rukia you’re the greatest!”

The over dramatized response had the two girls sharing a giggle “why don’t you try it on and I’ll go help Momo find something; then you can get out of here.” There was that sixty to zero feeling again; it had been a good enough day she’d forgotten the stop she had to make before going home.

“Okay, I’ll see you two in a bit then” with the dress clutched tight to her chest Rukia made her way into one of the many dressing rooms. If she were lucky either the elation or disappointment of the dress fitting or not would take her mind off the after party planned for her.

Fortunately the dress fit splendidly, unfortunately time and luck weren’t on her side and she was bidding her friends goodbye sooner than she would’ve liked. The streets were crowded with businessmen and woman going about their days and seemingly making it their job to bump into her with every opportunity presented further exacerbating her mood.

By the time she reached Orihime’s home she was already in a terrible mood. “Ugh, should we reschedule this?” Orihime asked her immediately after answering the door “no” she tried to let the anger and anxiety roll off her back, there was a marginal amount of success. “If I back out now I’ll probably back out again and again, I need to do this now” Orihime smiled down at her and stepped aside.

She tried not to but in the end it was inevitable; eyes wandered the apartment taking in everything they could. It wasn’t lavish, a small bookshelf held a few books and movies and several small house plants were scattered about but besides the smattering of standard furniture there was nothing. What drew her curiosity was the oddly bare walls save for the odd nail here and there jutting out of the drywall.

Though sparse the apartment did feel lived in with scuffs on the hardwood, an odd collection of hairpins framed and on the wall for display and a forgotten half-filled glass of water atop the bookcase. It all only forced her to the realization that whatever had been on those nails had been removed for her sake; a grim reminder of who this woman was. 

“So how is this supposed to go?” She finally asked. The older woman looked to her with kind eyes and gestured to the sofa behind her “first we take a seat.” Under Orihime’s watchful eyes Rukia spent longer than she cared to admit finding a comfortable enough spot.

“What would you like to talk about?” The question was daunting; she wasn’t prepared to lead the conversation and took to fiddling with a strand of grey thread that had come loose from the cushion beneath her. “Take your time, we have a while” the kind words were stress inducing. She didn’t want to be here, didn’t want to reveal that though she knew the attack wasn’t her fault there was still a flicker of shame within.

“This was a mistake” Rukia said moving to get up from the couch “what was, the therapy, or getting it from me?” Why the question gave her pause Rukia didn’t know “y-you” she awkwardly admitted. “Why?” Orihime didn’t look offended by the admission, only interested.

“Ichigo he… he still loves you” “is that all?” Again Rukia was stunned by the forwardness and deadpan delivery. “How can you just brush that off!?” Despite the outburst Orihime remained calm and collected “what else did he say?”

“It’s no secret to you that I know Ichigo rather intimately” the choice of words seemed designed to unnerve her “hearing that would undoubtedly hurt you and that doesn’t sound like something he’d do on purpose. So I’m asking you, what else did he say?”

“That only I make his pain go away” she answered, the couch cushion sinking under her weight once again. “So you’ve been helping him manage his grief, I assume he’s been helping you?” There wasn’t a wasted second before the words “of course” came shooting from her mouth. A prompt from Orihime wasn’t needed for her to continue.

“He’s always there for me to talk to but it’s mostly the little things. He still jokes about my height and makes fun of me for watching Chappy. I know it sounds dumb but it’s comforting in its own way; he’s not coddling me or holding back, he’s just Ichigo.” “Moving in with him then, it’s been a positive influence in your life; you’re not worried about your friends or someone finding out?” Thoughts of Byakuya raced through her mind, the things he would do to Ichigo if he found, whatever punishment he could face would pale in comparison to her brother’s wrath.

“There is someone isn’t there” a slow, confirming nod was given “would you like to talk about them?” A slow shake of the head, for now she didn’t want to. Renji was enough to worry about; she didn’t need nor want to jinx it.

“When you’re stressed about this person, or anything else, is there anything you do to calm yourself?” “Usually I try to do something to distract myself, I’ll read or watch something, sometimes I’ll take a bath if those don’t work.” Orihime nodded approvingly “is there anything else; I just like having the complete picture.” The gentle smile and her soft manner of speech, it reminded her of Hisana, perhaps that was why she was still there answering her questions.

“I’ll um…” Rukia found herself unable to meet the other woman’s gaze as she answered “I’ll ugh… I’ll cuddle… with Ichigo.” Rukia couldn’t bring herself to look at the other woman; her unease was only furthered by the fact that there was no follow up question, just silence. Eventually, she was forced to lock eyes with Orihime, the hand softly placed on her shoulder not giving her much of a choice.

Rukia had expected something, she didn’t know what but the caring look was the last thing she was anticipating. “Do you want to stop?” There was her out, so why was she shaking her head no? The answer was a pool of resolve that had built up within her and now… now she had to see this awkward, supposedly helpful experience to the end.

“So being close to Ichigo helps you calm down, that comes with its own challenges though doesn’t it.” Rukia had to hand it to the woman, she was as astute as they come “I don’t know where I stand with him anymore. We cuddle and share a bed but that’s about as intimate as we get. Sometimes I catch him staring, I’m sure he’s caught me. I wasn’t expecting us to get back together when I moved in, but this is frustrating. I want to ask him but I’m scared of his answer.”

“Have you considered he might be scared as well?” “No, it’s Ichigo, nothing scares him… he doesn’t get scared… does he?” Now that she thought about it in the short time they’d been living together she’d been the one to initiate almost all the intimacy. “He may seem invincible at times, but he’s still a man.”

“Be assertive” Orihime continued “show him what you want, it’s likely he’s holding back for your comfort.” “And what if he doesn’t reciprocate?” The question was met with a mischievous smile from the older woman “then he’ll let you down gently, but I doubt that’s very likely to happen, Ichigo doesn’t just invite women into his life.”

“I think it’s best if we end things here for today” Orihime suggested after a quiet moment. Surprised by the sudden ending Rukia could only stare at the woman with confusion “we haven’t even talked about why I’m here in the first place.” Orihime just waved away her concerns “I wasn’t planning on bringing it up, I want you to, when you’re comfortable. Today was more to see if I’m a good fit for you, if you’re comfortable, and if you’d like to continue. So, will you be coming around again?”

She’d come to this ready to leave and never come back, but it had been nice. Unanticipated but not unwelcome, so much so she found herself asking “what day works for you?” 

One Week Later

To her eyes she looked rather dazzling, the dress clung to her like a second skin and did well to show off her modest curves; those months at the club packing on makeup every night finally paid off too. Her abnormally pale skin was toned down a peg with a light dusting of foundation and some dark purple eye shadow really made her eyes pop; oh yeah she was looking good.

“Hey Rukia are you… woah” that self-satisfied arrogant smirk she’d learnt from him graced her lips; his reaction was exactly what she was looking for. A smart comeback died on her lips as he appeared in the mirror behind her; she was pretty sure Ichigo was dressed exactly how he was on their first date and yet it was still astounding how little he had to do to take her breath away.

“What, cat got your tongue?” The smirk that had been on her lips just moments ago had betrayed her and changed teams. “No, your tie is just too distracting” “my tie? What’s wrong with my tie?” He asked while playing with it. “Well for one it was crooked, you probably shouldn’t even be wearing one” she turned and grabbed hold of the knot, gently pulling it undone. “Guess I shouldn’t be showing up the students should I.” 

Deaf ears listened to his response; her eyes had naturally looked to meet his as he talked, only to realize just how close they were. She could step away, or make him; but this was an opportunity to get something she wanted. “Ichigo, do you know how to dance?” If she was going to have to suffer through a night of Renji, she could at least get one dance in with the man she wished she could go with.

“Kinda” the answer was apprehensive but she pushed forward anyway “I haven’t had to in a long time, do you think you could help give me a refresher; I don’t want to look like a fool tonight.” It was a little on the nose, but he could be a bit dense sometimes “sure, I guess” and this just happened to be one of those times.

What she expected was for Ichigo to take her hand and lead her around the room, what she got was him walking through the door into the living room. “You coming” he asked, head peaking around the doorway a couple minutes later; soft and slow music filtered past him and into their bedroom.

In the living room Ichigo offered his hand and there was a tingle up her spine as his fingers encased hers. He seemed hesitant to take her waist so with a sigh she grabbed his other hand and did it for him. They started slow; barely rocking back and forth to the beat. But as Ichigo’s confidence grew so too did their movements and soon he was leading her around the room, dipping and twirling her like an expert.

She’d never experienced anything quite like this, they were in complete sync; it was almost as if they were made for each other; he was the sun, the shockingly orange mop of his all but confirming it, and her, she would be the moon.

“Where’d you learn to dance?” The question was meant to put an abrupt end to the fantasy forming in her head. “My dad put me in lessons when I was younger; made me dance with my sisters too. He made me do a lot of things with and for them” Ichigo mused. “He said it was to make me a good husband, and to set an example for my sisters. I used hate it, the lessons cut into my weekends; but now…” he trailed off “but what?” “I’m thinking they’re not so bad” he answered.

As the song came to a close and another started he didn’t let go, not that she wanted him to. The lone acoustic guitar had a lustful undertone to it that was only further emphasized by the lyrics that accompanied it.

_You can set my house on fire, baby You can turn it into cinder and smoke_

As the beat picked up her heart moved to match; her fingers slipped from his and skated their way up his frozen arm. Briefly they danced over his pulse, finding it as frantic as her own. Settling on his cheek; fingers curled in the locks they could reach. In a move she hadn’t foreseen Ichigo pulled her roughly against him.

Lips were parted ever so slightly and her head tilted to the side; stocking covered toes were pushing their limits to get just and inch closer to him. In the end she settled for wrenching his head down to her level and smashing their lips together. Either he was too stunned to do anything as her lips moved against his… or she had completely miscalculated and he was not going to respond.

With an uneasy feeling settling in her stomach she fell to her feet, their lips separating. In those amber eyes she could see a lustful fire locked away that she could only beg he’d let go and give in to.

“Fuck it” Ichigo growled; his hand hiked up the dress before fingers dug into the soft flesh of her ass as he lifted her from her feet. Legs wrapped around his waist as she braced for the impact of her back against the nearby wall. It was hard, it was rough; and as his hungry lips took hers it was everything she wanted from the man holding her.

Arms wrapped around his neck as she tried to bring him closer; his teeth nipped at her lips drawing excited mews; a weak response to the passion he was showing. It wasn’t until his hand found her breast that the first of what was sure to be many sultry moans escaped her. She wanted, no needed to do something other than passively enjoy his attention. Legs and arms locked around him and a battle for domination began.

Separating only to take a hurried breath Rukia attacked with all the ferocity she could muster. Nails like claws dug into his back; her tongue fought for entrance to his mouth, something he reluctantly gave in to. He wasn’t going to let her win easily though and she was made to cry out his name when his attention turned to her neck and his teeth toyed with the delicate skin.

Her hips unconsciously went about grinding her core into his hardened length “you need to stop that.” His breath, though hot, was cool against her flushed skin and brought a quick reprieve to the heat that was threatening to overtake her. “Rukia I’m serious” he pleaded “if you don’t stop-” she didn’t allow him to finish, cutting him off with a kiss and resolving to see this through to however it would end.

“Bed” she demanded between kisses, but once again there was pushback from Ichigo “Rukia we-” “I swear I will drag you to our bed if I have to!” His resistance looked to be quashed; the cream wall was left behind and soon she was falling back and being engulfed by the plush comforter.

Hands reached for his jacket, latching on and pulling him down on top of her. The thin cotton that shielded her womanhood was growing uncomfortably wet as they resumed a more violent and needy grinding.

Ichigo groaned her name as his hands wandered under the dress, pushing it further and further up her body and exposing her sweat slicked skin to the cool air. Wet kisses were laid upon her skin trailing downward towards the cotton covered mound. Her eyes were clenched shut as anticipation built with each kiss getting closer and closer till… the shrill ring of her phone startled them apart.

Rukia groaned in frustration and Ichigo backed away, the nerve he had been showing disappearing with each subsequent ring. “You should probably get that” one look at the caller ID was enough for her to want the fucking thing annihilated. With Ichigo clambering off the bed though it seemed any chance at reviving the past mood was nixed.

“What” her tone promised Renji a swift death if he lacked a good reason. “Chill Rukes, I’ve been down here for ten minutes now I wanted to make sure you hadn’t fallen into the toilet or something.” As much as she wanted to fault him for showing up it was her fault for suggesting it. Slapping him was easily justifiable but that didn’t stop the guilt she felt.

“I’ll be down in a minute” quickly ending the conversation there. With Ichigo no longer in the room off came the soaked panties and into the laundry basket they went.

Her makeup luckily escaped unscathed from the previous activities, the dress however suffered from a few wrinkles though nothing worrisome. With a fresh pair of panties and clutch in hand she sauntered out of their room and to the front door; brimming with confidence in her looks and agonizing sexual frustration.

“Ichigo I’m leaving!” She called out to him, but there was no answer “that orange haired bastard left without saying good bye.” It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened; sometimes he was in a hurry in the mornings; but after what they were just doing, where they were about to go; she would have him on his knees begging for mercy that would not come. 

A monkey in a monkey suit was what greeted her just outside the building. “Finally, what took you so long? I’ve been standing here for an eternity.” Her eyes rolled “sorry for wanting to look presentable.” That had been the wrong answer to go with if the suggestive smirk Renji now sported was anything to go by.

“Trying to look good for me?” He asked “no, I was thinking of stealing Toshiro away from Momo later and looking good would help.” The sarcastic reply had Renji laughing all the way to his car and had her thinking that perhaps she should actually steal Toshiro for a couple of songs.

Car rides with Ichigo were often quiet affairs; if she managed even a few words out of him it was a miracle. Renji wasn’t Ichigo though and didn’t share the same overly cautious nature as the carrot top; the change of pace was refreshing. If he could keep his eyes more on the road and less on her however, that would be nice.

It wasn’t until they reached the school that the inevitable question concerning her new living situation came up, honestly, she thought it would’ve been the first thing he asked. “So ugh… that was a pretty nice place you scored” “it is” she quickly agreed, there was a sliver of hope that it would end there, but this was Renji and it involved her, so that was just a fantasy.

“How could you afford such a place?” That was the million dollar question and the one there was no easy answer to. Any answer she could give would only open her to more questions. “My brother gave it to me, I think he’s trying to apologize in his own way” it wasn’t the best lie, especially if Renji still talked to him. It was however the best one.

Whether he bought it or not remained to be seen but her reply wasn’t questioned and with some light, friendly banter they made their way to the school’s gym.

Colourful ribbons tied to equally colourful balloons were strewn about the rafters, the walls were decorated with Christmas lights done up in an assortment of shapes with stars seemingly being the most popular; there was even a disco ball hanging from the roof, shimmering in the artificial light. Ichigo had warned her the principal had been the one to decide on the decorations; it really showed.

She found Ichigo standing next to Orihime, casually talking and watching as student after student filed into the room; Aizen was as far away from them as he could possibly be and busy chatting up some of her fellow students, Momo included. “You want something to drink?” “Huh… sure” she responded, Renji’s question barely registering, too busy searching for more of their friends.

A cup of pale blue liquid was unceremoniously shove into her open hands; it sloshed over the edge and narrowly missed hitting her dress “watch it Renji.” “It’s fine, it didn’t hit you” he brushed it off with a cocky grin. Unlike the smirk that often worn by the other colourful man in her life Renji’s version was not something she could relearn to find endearing. “Just be careful, I’m not swimming in cash you know. This was a luxury and I’d like to keep it looking nice.” His smile faded into a frown and he nodded in understanding. 

“You going to drink that?” He seemed just a bit too excited about the punch for her tastes “you spiked my drink didn’t you.” “No” he responded, smile widening “I spiked the punch bowl.” He was just too proud of his actions and couldn’t keep quiet, thankfully it was only a few nearby students who overheard; and then hastily proceeded to the bowl.

“It’s not going to hurt you, just loosen up and have some fun” this was supposed to be a fun evening, and maybe it would help her deal with him. One sip was almost too much for her, the harsh acid taste of the alcohol was overwhelming and it burnt going down. “How much did you put in this!?” “Just a bit” Renji answered pulling a small empty flask from his pocket “it’s way too strong.”

“Damn, someone must’ve had the same idea as me” Renji said after a curious sip of his own “great minds think alike!” His excitement was almost childlike in nature and much to her surprise downed the rest of his cup in a single breath “please tell me you’re cabbing home” “please Rukes I’m not that dumb” “could’ve fooled me” she sighed and grabbed his arm “come on I think I see Rangiku.” Reluctantly Renji followed behind, pressuring her to leave their friends alone for the night. Going with him was a mistake, she should’ve just stayed home.

**…**

Keys were firmly pressing into the palm of his hand as he watched Rukia walk towards her friends with Renji in tow; the pain wasn’t easing his frustration. He should’ve been paying attention to all the students but his eyes kept ending up on the petite ravenette he had been so ready to defile half an hour ago. Ashamed is probably how he should have felt, but it had been so right having her on their bed like that; god why did he have to be thinking about this now!

“I remember when you took me dancing for the first time” Ichigo’s attention turned back to the woman at his side grateful for the distraction “I never did thank your dad for making you take lessons.” “You gave him a grandson; I think that was thanks enough for him.”

His father had loved Kazui almost as much as they did. He would prance around with Kazui in his arms proclaiming him to be the only worthwhile thing his son ever did for him; besides bringing Orihime into the family of course. It was one of the few things he and his father could actually agree on.

“It doesn’t look like she’s having much fun does it” silently Ichigo groaned as his attention was brought back to Rukia who was being awkwardly spun around in the centre of the room by a certain red head. True enough to Orihime’s words while it looked like Renji was having the time of his life Rukia looked about ready to call it a night, and it had only just begun.

It wasn’t like there was anything he could do but feel the frustration grow as the buffoon held onto her. Renji didn’t deserve to touch her, only he did… who was he kidding he didn’t either after leaving the apartment like that.

As the night drew on and on and on he was treated to display after display of awful dance moves and terrible attempts at flirting. More than once he was tempted to separate the two of them but that would only be a mistake. He tried to distract himself with all the other students crowded into the room and their terrible footwork that only got worse as the night went on.

Normally he’d think nothing of it but as his eyes landed on Rukia for the umpteenth time he could see she was in the same situation. There was only so much that could be blamed on her partner’s careless attempts at flashy dance moves and fatigue wouldn’t be making her movements as sloppy as they were; the likely reason had him fighting through the crowd to where Orihime and Aizen were having a lively conversation.

“Someone spiked the drinks.” The sudden statement was met with a blank look from the pair of councillors, “you’ve known the entire time, haven’t you?” “Well yeah” Orihime responded “it’s being held on a Thursday night for a reason, but this was still bound to happen, we’ve just been making sure to give them water and calling the parents of those who’ve had too much.”

“Isn’t this just a bit irresponsible?” This time it was Aizen who tried to quell his fears “they can drink here where they can be supervise in a safe setting, or later when they’re on their own or with friends who may be too scared to call for help.” As much as Ichigo hated to admit the man… well he did have a point; wasn’t like they were going to do anything anyways.

**…**

The buzz from the string of drinks Renji had steadily been feeding her was beginning to take its toll. Moving became an exercise in maintaining balance and her mind wouldn’t let her hold a though for more than a few seconds.

“You want another one?” Hair flew everywhere as she shook her head no “I’ve had enough.” “Suit yourself” with a shrug of his shoulders Renji turned his back to her and headed back for more.

“You need better choice in dates” the low husky voice cut through the haze clouding her mind with ease. Turning she found herself face to face, well really face to chest with the other pastel haired man she was mad at. “Here” the word was accompanied by the toss of a water bottle that was meant to be caught but instead bounced off her hands and fell to the ground with a wet splat. “Man you’re just out of it aren’t you.”

Retrieving the bottle from the ground; hastily the cap was torn off before being brought to her lips where it remained till the last drop left its plastic prison. This genus move served two purposes, hydration, and giving her time to come up with something to say to him. “What do you want?” Seemed to be the best she could do in about thirty seconds.

“I’m reminding you to take a breather, I don’t need you passing out. It would be a pain trying to get you home without raising suspicion.” If she were sober than it would have been easy to come up with some smartass retort, with alcohol in her system however the words were taken at face value and they stung. “Thanks for the water Kurosaki-Sensei, I’ll be sure to pass your advice off to my date once he gets back, wouldn’t want more of your students passing out on you.”

He looked a little hurt by her words and there was a small pang of guilt that was thankfully overshadowed by the immense amount of satisfaction she was currently feeling for making him feel as bad as she did.

Spying Renji through the crowd of students she bid Ichigo a quick and polite goodbye; shaky legs be damned a little space was needed between the two of them after that exchange.

“What did he want?” Renji’s eyes were narrowed with ugly intent and his words were laced with a hatred she didn’t expect. It seemed the drinking was bringing out a disgusting side of him she hadn’t expected. “Ichi- Kurosaki-Sensei just gave me some water and told me to pace myself.” The small slip gave her pause; it seemed as though Renji hadn’t noticed but too much to drink coupled with too many unchecked emotions and you have a recipe for disaster.

“I think I should go home” Renji didn’t bother trying to hide his disappointment, something she should really have expected. “Come on Rukes” he sounded almost frustrated with her “there’s only an hour left, please, stay for me.”

“I’m going home” she stressed, turning to walk away “wait” Renji pleaded; seizing her wrist to keep her still. “One more dace” Renji was a lot of things, but for the most part could be trusted to keep his word. “Just one, and you’re paying for my cab home” “deal.” With how quickly he jumped at the chance Rukia knew she’d made a mistake, but it was just one song, how bad could it really be.

The answer was very, very bad, worse than she’d even though possible. For the entire night she had been spared any song that promoted a closer than usual style of dance. But now as the tune of a slow romantic song reached her ears; he’d planned this, he had to have, that was the only explanation.

Cautious steps were taken towards her very willing partner. Over and over she reminded herself that it was just this dance and then it would be over. So, against her better judgement she took Renji’s outstretched hand and allowed herself to be again whisked into the midst of the crowd of horny and drunk teenagers.

With his hands firmly wrapped around her hips Rukia could not avail herself of the alcohol stained breath constantly bombarding her; but it would be over soon. Her sore feet could take a break and she could get out of his arms and slide into bed and the sweet embrace of its sheets.

“Do you remember all the nights we’d lay in bed planning our future together, there were nights we barely got any sleep.” While Renji reminisced fondly over their past with a goofy grin to boot, he laughed at how they used to be and dread began building inside her, this needed to be shut down quickly. “Do you remember why those dreams came to an end?” Either her question or the sharp tone she used caught him off guard, that dumb smile of his faded and for once he actually looked serious. “I do, I’m… I’m sorry. I’ve tried to change, to be a better man… for you.”

The climax of the song started building; usually this would be the moment couples would share a passionate kiss. His arms tightened their hold “no no no no no” she groaned to herself, it was obvious what was coming. “Renji I know what you’re about to do, please don’t I don’t- mmph.” The kiss wasn’t pleasant, the taste of alcohol was strong, his lips were dry and chapped and roughly scraped against hers. It was wrong, so, so wrong. The only buffoon that should be kissing her was Ichigo.

His arms loosened and she pushed away, his eyes were looking for an answer from her and she was going to give him one, just not the one he was hoping for. 

Time slowed to a crawl; her body twisting to allow for a greater wind up before delivering an ear piercing, earth shatteringly powerful slap sending Renji firmly to the ground. It must have been twice as hard as the one that got her into this mess “I SAID NO, YOU SELF SERVING JACKASS!”

With the adrenaline slowly wearing off she became keenly aware to the fact that the music had stopped and every eye in the room seemed to be on her. With not many other options she moved for the exit; each step faster than the last till air rushed by as she sprinted from the room.

**…**

Knuckles were a pale white and cracked from the strain he was putting on them. His face was contorted into one of seething anger and he was more than tempted to march over to the pair and put his fist through Renji’s face. As the desire grew to intolerable levels and the first step was taken he was quickly called back to reality by a firm hand on his shoulder. “Ichigo, don’t” Orihime was right, he needed to calm down, the only problem was he couldn’t. He was the idiot that should be kissing her, not the pineapple headed buffoon.

It was hard to tear his eyes away from them, but he managed. Looking back at his ex she offered him a sympathetic smile, there was also a hint of mischief in her eyes, like she knew something he didn’t.

“I SAID NO” Rukia’s voice cut through the music and the chatter of the students as if there was only silence in the air. Ichigo’s head moved so fast whiplash was a possibility; the slap that went with her words had a feeling of pride swelling within him.

“One of us has to go after her” Aizen said, announcing his presence. “I’ll go” Ichigo quickly decided already making moves to the door. “Forgive me but I must point out that Inoue-San or I would be better candidates, dealing with these issues is our job.”

Stopping in his tracks Ichigo turned back to the other man, unsurprised to find Aizen wearing that same creepy smile as always. “I think I’ll be fine, I have two sisters” he pointed out. “Besides, I think Abarai needs some counselling, someone has to explain that no means no and I am not the man for that job.”

Not waiting for a reply Ichigo left the gym, grateful to put some distance between himself and the other man; as well as the opportunity to give a sincere apology.

**…**

“Would you look at that, literally the first place I checked.” It was a poor attempt at lightening her mood and Ichigo should’ve known that. The roof door clicked behind him and the scrape of his shoes across the tile grew louder as he got closer, eventually taking a spot beside her against, leaning against the rusted railing separating them from a four story drop.

“Are you here to tell me I shouldn’t have hit him?” “Nah, I think you should’ve gone in for seconds. He was still awake when I left.” She couldn’t help the undignified snort that forced its way out “there we go; don’t need you moping around forever.” That sarcastic comment would’ve usually earned him a smack, but as she went to deliver one to the back of his head Ichigo simply ducked and avoided her. “You’re got to try harder than that midget” “jackass” she cursed while delivering a harder and much more successful attack.

Despite the aggressive action the carrot top smiled down at her “worked that out of your system yet, or am I going to get more?” “You should be getting more, a lot more for how you just left me after… after that.” His cheeks ignited a familiar shade of red, and while she couldn’t be exactly sure, the warmth spreading across hers suggested they matched.

“I was scared” Ichigo looked everywhere but at her after the confession “I’ve wanted that for so long, to have it within reach and to be so sharply reminded… it was a lot. I could’ve handled it better.”

With his hand still on the railing she placed hers on top; for a while the only sound was the whispering of the wind; it was something she loved about Ichigo. Moments were given time to breathe and silence was never awkward; if there was nothing worth being said than nothing was said.

“We should probably go down now” “I should, you should head home.” She probably would’ve protested had the loud bustle of students not reached her. “I’ll call you a cab; oh and don’t wait up, I’ll probably be a while.”

After the call conflict took root on his face before evolving into a look of resolve. With her back pressed against the cold railing she couldn’t escape him even if she wanted to. It seemed like an eternity had passed after he brazenly entered her personal space. She wanted to question just what he was thinking but words weren’t coming; she was too entranced by eyes that were shining like golden embers in the night sky. “I’ll see you at home.”

She was left speechless, not at the words; he said that all the time now, but at the lips pressed against her own. “Guess I’m not so scared now.”


	10. The Temptation of Adam

Each step was an effort, her legs were sore and she was tired. Though her body was pushing for her to go right to bed when she got home there was something she needed to do; coffee could keep sleep at bay anyway.

“Ah, there you two are” another man’s voice grabbed her attention. “Aizen, I thought I told you I could handle this.” The hands shoved in his pockets showed an undisturbed, calm man. Yet like with Riruka before Ichigo was putting himself between her and the councillor.

“I just thought you could use a little help that’s all, you were up there for a while” Aizen didn’t seem threatening but as he took a step towards them Ichigo forced her to back up. “As you can see I have everything under control so why don’t you head back to the gym, I’m sure Inoue-San could use some help with all those students.”

It was strange watching the two of them interact, neither was being necessarily rude to the other but there was a clear animosity between them.

“I think you’d be better suited to help, some of the students are a bit rowdy and I’m afraid you might be better equipped than I to deal with them. I’m fully capable of calling a cab for Miss Kuchiki.” “I’m sure you are” Ichigo agreed with him “but I already called her one, told them to look for a man with bright orange hair, afraid if I’m not there they might get confused; so if you’ll excuse us.”

Ichigo signalled for her to walk in front of him, as she passed his hand was placed firmly on the small of her back, guiding her away from the smiling man.

“You don’t trust me, do you Kurosaki-Sensei.” As Ichigo stopped she did too, he slowly turned on the stairs to face Aizen, his hand still not leaving her. “I only trust people about as far as I can throw them and quite frankly I don’t think you’d go very far.” The two men left it at that, Aizen stood on the stairs watching them go as Ichigo pushed her to walk faster away from him.

She looked to him for an answer to the behaviour only to find his lips set in a firm, grim line. His eyes were no different, always darting back and forth like he was expecting some sort of attack. Whatever his problem was with the other man she’d make sure when he got home it was the furthest thing from his mind. 

**…**

If he saw another drunk student a hundred years from now, it would be a hundred too soon. Somehow the students weren’t even the worst of it, the parents were god awful with some being way too severe with their punishments or just entirely not caring. At least half the blame could be shifted away from the teens though, one glass was probably enough to knock most of them on their ass; whoever spiked the drinks had to be Keigo levels of stupid.

The yearning for his bed had never been so strong. Leaning against the faux wooden paneling of the elevator wall he realized ‘his bed’ didn’t exactly sound right anymore, at this point they had been sharing it for a while so wouldn’t it actually be their bed now? It did sound more inviting that way. Whatever it was Rukia was sure to be in it and that itself was motivation enough to encourage a brisk pace through the small hallway to the front door.

He entered quietly as to not rouse the sleeping girl, the noble intentions proved unnecessary. By the balcony doors she stood bathed in the light of the full moon and wearing that damned button up of his and letting it hang dangerously off one of her delicate shoulders, gifting him with the view of her milky white skin. 

Almost voiceless the only thing he could ask was “what are you doing up?” Steadily she turned to meet his stare; her posture showed she was unsure. Arms were wrapped tight around herself and she was hunched ever so slightly “I wanted… needed to ask you about something.” “Is everything okay?” He asked taking a step towards her, but as she signalled for him to stay where he was Ichigo could only gaze at the beautiful woman in front of him with confusion.

“I need to know how you felt tonight, watching Renji hold me, dance with me… kiss me. I need to know how you feel.” He knew this probably had something to do with their kiss on the roof. The silence was deafening, this was the moment.

“There wasn’t a second I didn’t hate it” he confessed. There was no way to tell what would happen after his words but strangely the last thing he’d expected was to feel her body pressed firmly against his own. Her movements had gone unnoticed by him as if she’d simply walked on air.

Nimble fingers pulled at the buttons of his shirt leaving his chest bare for her viewing pleasure. As they traveled across his skin goosebumps were left in their wake and a chill was sent through him. He was firmly in the palm of her hand.

“Ichigo” she spoke his name like a prayer “I want you.” Those three words, three simple words that had his eyes widening and heart quickening; the soothing heat of her body fled as she took a step back. “We can’t, you’ve had too much to drink.” “Ichigo” the authority in her voice undeniable “I know my limit.”

Like magic as she finished speaking the shirt she’d stolen from him all those months ago gracefully slid from her shoulders and sank to the ground in a heap around her bare feet.

In twenty-five years he’d been lucky enough to be the chosen man to a few beautiful women and allowed to see them in all their glory. Women that could’ve been carved out of marble and called goddesses; and yet none of them compared to Rukia. Skin like porcelain with the only colour being the dusting of pink across her cheeks “aren’t you going to say something?” She asked, the blush deepening and her head turned away shyly “I don’t think I have the words to describe you” he told her as they closed the gap between them.

His hand traced up her arm and around her neck while the other firmly grasped her waist “I can show you though” he whispered against her lips.

Like a delicate figurine he lifted her into his arms, their lips never breaking. Elfin legs wrapped around his waist and her bare sex was pressed firm against the hard tent in his trousers. Neither could hold back the carnal moans, they were only muffled by the constant battle of lips.

Without hesitation Ichigo kicked the door to their room open, slamming it into the wall and probably damaging the piece behind it; by far the least of his concerns at the moment. Contrasting the violent action seconds ago he laid Rukia down on their bed with the gentle care one would give to their most prized possession.

“Clothes” She managed out between their kisses, her hands already pushing the jacket and shirt off his shoulders. Detaching from her for a moment the offending objects were thrown into a corner of the room; a jumbled mess to be dealt with tomorrow.

Instead of seeking out her lips for more he planted his on the collar of her neck and trailed kisses down, and down, and down along her perfect skin; till he could feel the unmistakable heat of her sex. The most forbidden of fruit was mere inches away and the temptation was nearly too much for him, and yet he maintained composure, waiting for her approval.

“I swear if you stop here I’m going to find someone who won’t.” The threat was all the confirmation he needed; in a manner that must have been achingly slow for her he worked the rest of the way down to her soaked flower.

The way she squirmed and tried so hard to hold back her moans ignited a desire to make her scream. With her quivering snatch now within the reach of his mouth Ichigo chose not to give the relief Rukia was wanting. His lips ghosted over her lower set to the inside of her thigh, nibbling and licking the tender skin till she begging for his attention to be turned towards the prize between her thighs.

One long lick was enough to send her head back moaning out his name, but he wanted more. His hands snaked around her thighs pulling her closer to him as his lips latched onto her clit. His tongue danced around the sensitive bud; first circling it before moving to flicking back and forth over; achieving louder moans.

Letting one hand detangle itself it soon joined his mouth in the onslaught against her. Carefully he teased the small hole, slathering it in her juices before pushing it inside. A loud gasp pierced the air at the intrusion and Rukia’s hands roughly gripped his hair, violently pulling him into her sex.

With great care a second finger was slowly added to the first. The moan that accompanied his actions threw him for a second, it almost sounded pain filled. Her hips though started bucking against him, rocking his fingers in and out of herself.

Motivated by her actions and with vigour he didn’t know he had Ichigo’s efforts were doubled, more intent than ever to bring about her orgasm. His fingers moved in tandem with her hips and his tongue skipped across her nub at lightning speed. “Ichigo, oh Ichigo!” She called his name with such reverence it was like a prayer being shouted to the heavens, but he didn’t want shouting he wanted screaming.

Harder and harder he worked to push her forward to that sweet release. It didn’t take much more pushing before her head was thrown back and she was quivering in his grasp. There was no screaming but the loud gasp and small squeaks that escaped as he brought her to orgasm were almost as satisfying.

Even as she came down from the high he was still feasting on her, trying to prolong it. “Ichigo, oh god, please stop!” Her hands gripped fistfuls of his hair and roughly pulled him off her sex. With her honey still staining his lips she pulled him into the wettest, most passionate kiss he’d ever experienced.

“That… was… amazing” the words came out between heavy pants; Ichigo, for once didn’t bother with a snarky or smart ass comment, too captivated by the look of adoration on the flushed face of the woman beneath him it never even crossed his mind.

She moved to get up but he placed his hand on her chest keeping her firmly on the bed. “Ichigo what are you AH!” She shrieked as his finger slipped inside again. The way she squirmed as he assaulted her sensitive mound was candy to his eyes. “Ichigo… stop” her words were rendered null by the pleasure and enjoyment written on her face so plain for him to see. Too caught up in his lover’s pleasure Ichigo failed to notice her legs creeping up behind him till it was too late.

It wasn’t the first time she’d had him on his back, this time it felt different though. The fait smell of alcohol lingered on her breath and raven tresses tickled his face. The look in her eyes was one of pure lust “I was going to return the favour” she whispered in his ear “but since you were so rude… I think I’ll skip to the main event.”

Soft hands lay tender touches across his chest, slowly working their way down to his belt. This was it, if he let her they would be crossing one hell of a line; for once though there wasn’t a single part of him fighting against it.

Deft hands slowly worked away at his zipper; sporting a playful grin Rukia slowly freed his erection from its cotton confines. Curious fingers cautiously gripped his shaft, slowly pumping up and down. Her touch like silk sent shivers down his spine; her technique was far above what he expected as her thumb made swift swipes over the head of his cock with each pump of her hand.

“I hope you’re not too tired, I was hoping for a memorable night.” That smile, her words, this was a challenge and one that he intended to win.

Height and weight were on his side and she was on her back yet again, taking a thigh in each hand he pulled her to the edge of the bed. Slowly he dragged the head of his cock up and down her folds, coating it in her slick honey. “Condom, now” no response except for her legs again wrapping around his waist and pushing the head of his cock against her tight entrance; it was useless to fight against her.

“I’m on the pill, you don’t need one” her assurance came out as a purr and it was then he chose to completely give in. The head of his cock slowly pushed through her tight ring and was buried deep inside the petite woman beneath him. A gasp of surprise and perhaps pain echoed throughout the room as Rukia grew accustom to the new intrusion.

Her finger tips reached for his hair pulling him down for a searing kiss. There was no hiding the tremble of her lips or the water that leaked from her eyes; all he could do was hold her.

The tense muscles eventually relaxed and Ichigo dared to break away. His calloused thumb brushed away the remaining tears from her tender skin; her smile, followed by a nod told him she was okay. 

“Slow.”

Even as a whisper her word carried the weight of a command, one he was all too happy to follow.

Gently, he drew from her wetness till only the head of his cock remained buried inside. Light thrusts sent gasps and mews from the mouth of the woman beneath him; and even he had trouble holding back.

His lips busied themselves on hers, her neck, collar bone and breasts; anything to keep his mind away from the tight walls clutching his member. With each stroke of his hips the pull to give in and pound the tiny girl into the bed became stronger and stronger; but he was a resilient man and would not break.

“Ichigo… harder.”

Or so he thought.

She would get what she asked for. Pulling from their embrace he took her knees and pulled them apart. In the pale moonlight she was exposed fully to him. The flushed skin, the face of a woman clearly lost in pleasure, and of course her sex; an unobstructed view her taking his member and loving every second of it.

This position afforded greater access and he was going to take full advantage of it. The room soon filled with the sound of their thighs slapping together and the wet sounds of her soaked flower being ferociously pounded.

She looked on the brink and Ichigo was determined to bring her there. Sensually trailing a hand down the inside of her thigh and resting on the top of her mound his thumb searched for her button, eager to flip her switch and see just how loud she could be.

A moan surely loud enough to wake their neighbours and a plea for more had his poor thumb working her clit like it was going out of style. Wildly she thrashed about, as if the pleasure was too much and she was trying to escape; like he would let her.

His other hand was firmly hooked around her thigh and was forcing her to meet every one of his thrusts.

“Ichigo Ichigo Ichigo.”

His name kept rolling from her lips along with choruses of more and pleas for him to go even harder.

Then she snapped. 

Her nails raked the skin on his back before digging in, legs wrapped around his waist and her mouth opened to a silent scream. Her core clutched his member tightly trying to wring him dry.

But he wouldn’t let it happen yet, she was going to ride this high for as long as he could provide it; so even as she became a quivering mess Ichigo kept on, pounding her into their bed.

Her legs kept were still locked around him as his orgasm neared. “Rukia, I should pull out” but her legs just tightened around him.

“I want you inside me.”

Maybe it was the moan that came with her words but somewhere inside the responsible part of him broke and he couldn’t hold back anymore. A few particularly powerful thrusts was all it took for him to let loose inside of her.

There wasn’t a chance he would pull out till every drop was wrung from his spent cock. Rukia seemed fine with it, still basking in the afterglow of her orgasm; he lay on top of her, their spent sexes still intertwined.

**…**

She found their bed cold and lonely as the shriek of the alarm interrupted pleasant dreams. Her arm had gone for some part of him to only find herself alone and disappointed; after she’d given herself to him he could’ve at least had the decency to wake with her.

Even with the summer whether coming on stronger with each day the hardwood was unnaturally cold under her feet; and with the aching between her legs it was a miserable morning so far, and Ichigo was going to share in it with her.

Pulling the comforter free from the bed and wrapping herself in it; its soft confines it provided relief for one of her problems.

It was slow going to the door, with each step there was a renewed ache from her freshly used muscles. How she would survive the day was beyond her knowledge; she was sure to be the talk of the school after attacking Renji like that, even if the fool deserved it.

The worries could wash off her back for a little while at least; seemed the berry had at least one good idea in him. In just a set of flannel pyjama pants he was hunched over the stove working away on their breakfast; maybe she could forgive him for leaving her alone, if it was good enough.

She hadn’t the chance to view her handiwork; mostly because she was being crushed by him. But with an unadulterated view the red markings that covered his strong back had a sense of pride flowing through her. There was a little bit of something else, something that had her at his side.

Muscles twitched and he flinched as she lay her hands upon his bare skin. The red marks that adorned her lover they looked painful; bright red welts and long scratches had the sense of pride she’d been feeling slip away. How had she let herself do something like that to him; was that the reason she woke alone, was he angry with her?

“You’re not going soft on me now are you midget?”

Usually this would be far too early in the morning to be dealing with his signature cocky smirk, but for once she could let it slide. “A few scratches aren’t going to hurt me so lighten up, guilt isn’t a good look for you.”

“Jackass.”

“Do you want breakfast, because calling me names isn’t how you get it.”

Breakfast, that’s why he’d left her alone, to make her breakfast, “I wanted to surprise you when you woke up, guess I wasn’t fast enough.”

“Guess not, try to be faster next time won’t you carrot top.”

“I can just eat this all myself”

She knew he wouldn’t, Ichigo was just too good of a man to do that. But it did inspire some quality teasing. “Why Ichigo, is this how you treat all women after a night of passionate love making; leaving them naked and hungry in your kitchen.”

“What the hell are you talking about midget, I’ll have you know I… wait… naked? You’re seriously telling me you have nothing on underneath that?”

The comforter was parted just enough for Rukia to expose her bare thigh and hip to him just for a split second. Ichigo was on her in no time, his hands pushing through the blanket and snaking their way around her hips and pulling her tight against his chest.

Lips danced from hers down to her neck while a hand sought out and began caressing the supple flesh of her ass. The attention was welcome but the throbbing between her legs remained and as his fingers grew ever closer the need for it to end became more and more achingly aware.

“Ichigo” half a moan, half a plea that had him stopping just before reaching her sex. “I’m sore.”

A different excuse probably would’ve done her more favours, as it stood he was looking mighty proud of himself “was I a little too rough with you last night midget?”

Was he expecting her to blush and shy away like some timid little girl; if he wanted to play this game she wouldn’t stop him. “Last night was…” she would make him wait with bated breath; going so far to let out a dreamy sigh she built his expectations and ego higher and higher.

“Adequate.”

Oh how quickly that look of pride faded from his face. She would let him stew on her word just for a bit. He was already calling after her as she returned to their room. He could hear the truth later, this was too much fun.

**…**

The students that surrounded him looked miserable; he wasn’t going to be too hard on them, their condition was only partially their fault. The majority were inexperienced with the drink and it didn’t help that every ounce of that damn punch reeked of alcohol.

His class appeared to fair no better than the rest of their peers. Those who bothered to show up shunned the light and it was unusually quiet; except of course for the hushed whispers of the two girls in front.

**…**

Hushed conversations and eyes intently focused on her every move; it was impossible to escape them. Echoing off the pale white walls; it was more like a prison, less like a school.

Slipping into the classroom she came face to face… well more face to breast with her busty friend. A quieter version of her standard “morning” was interrupted by a life taking hug that had air wheezing from her lungs.

“Oh… sorry.”

Rangiku’s over excited displays of affection, though dangerous were always a welcome addition to her day. A certain warmth and assurance always came with them; facing the pineapple after the debacle with the dance wasn’t sounding like the good morning a Friday deserved.

“He’s not here.”

The relief crashed down like rain in a thunderstorm; instantly she was perked up.

The hard plastic chair at her desk was quickly becoming the most uncomfortable seat; her sore muscles wouldn’t let her find a comfortable position.

The snickering coming from her left didn’t go unnoticed “I’m just sore.” The whispered explanation was more than enough to get her friend speculating; watching the realization cross her friends face was fulfilling.

“No… you didn’t, did you?”

She kept her eyes focused straight ahead as Ran quietly asked question after question clearly forgetting just where they were. She was eager to gush to her friend but that would have to wait for a more appropriate time, especially with the man who’d been in-between her thighs coming through the door.

Ichigo didn’t immediately take his normal position at the board instead he went for the blinds, closing them for the comfort of what looked to be the majority of the class.

“Be honest with me, none of you are going to be paying much attention to my lesson are you.”

Ichigo already knew the answer, that she was certain of. The casual manner in which he sauntered to the front of the class, hands shoved into his pockets, and lacking any sort of material was a dead giveaway to anyone who paid attention, but they were all busy dealing with other problems.

“I’m only going to do this once, for today just study, read or catch up on homework. There’s no point in teaching if it’s going to go in one ear and out the other.”

The class quickly took to his words. Many had their heads down and were completely out of it; a few actually busied themselves with homework and other projects. Ichigo himself appeared rather pleased with the situation, leaning back in his chair and reading from his copy of Hamlet.

She always found him handsome, even when he wasn’t put together there was a certain charm about him. There was something more this time, something she didn’t get to see often. No one around her knew how lucky they were to see their teacher at peace.

She continued to watch even as his eyes lazily dragged from the page to stare back at her. Cliché it was but she quickly averted her eyes, finding the patterns in the wood on her desk much more interesting.

**…**

First Uryu had to drag him to some dumb meeting, then the fucking elevator just had to be down for maintenance. Maybe he’d just skip dinner, he wasn’t really hungry, more worn out than anything.

Whatever Rukia was playing inside had the doorknob rattling in his hand. One step over the threshold and he was assaulted by the loud music.

_All the men of the country club, the ladies of the 'xilliary Talkin' 'bout love like it's apple pie and liberty_

There she was bopping and dancing in the middle of the living room in just ankle socks, boy shorts and an old ratty t-shirt, beautiful.

“Oi midget, might want to turn that down.”

He didn’t get the most mature response, just a tiny pink tongue poking out from between her lips; she did however do as told.

“Don’t need our neighbours complaining about noises coming from us at all hours of the day.”

A little suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows let her know just what he meant, and turned her into a blushing mess.

“Stop being such a pervert carrot top.”

Dumping his bag at the foot of the couch there was one question on his mind, the couch, or her? In the end he was strewn across the plush leather, eyes closed and revelling in the comfort afforded to him and his aching feet.

A small smirk made its way across his lips as extra weight languidly spread itself across him. The soothing scent of lavender made its way to his nose as she tucked her head under his chin. “Comfortable?” A quiet “yes” was a murmured against his chest as on their own his arms wrapped around her waist, keeping the small woman pressed tight against him.

With the song changing into a piano focused tune he found himself quietly singing along and enjoying the moment.

“How’d you get into this kind of music, it’s not like it plays on the radio, believe me I checked.”

“My mom, it’s what she grew up listening to” he eventually answered.

“She isn’t Japanese?”

He let out a snort “what gave it away, was it my bright orange hair?”

“There’s no need to be a jackass berry.”

Ichigo just laughed away the insult “her father’s family was Japanese.”

“My mom wanted to learn more about her grandparent’s homeland and came here as an international student, while here she just happened to meet and somehow fall in love with my old man. When she moved here permanently she brought with a huge collection of CDs that she kept adding too. She always had something playing, said it reminded her of home; after she passed my dad kept with it to remind us of her.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring her up.”

He just smiled “it’s alright, they’re happy memories

Vaguely aware of the hand gently pressed to his cheek pulling his head up and forcing eye contact. Her lips were lightly parted and with how hard it was pounding he could feel her heartbeat pounding against his chest, almost as if it were his own.

Even if it were the millionth time he wouldn’t tire of her lips; or the way her hands lay gentle caresses across his skin.

As the kisses got more heated and their touches more desperate it was starting to look like a continuation of the night before, there was only one problem.

“Aren’t you supposed to be sore?”

“I still am, I just like teasing you berry.”


	11. The Singer

The bar was packed; Rangiku was beside her and there was a practiced lie on her lips just in case. There was only so much she could do. Still, preparations along with a glass of wine to loosen her up went a long way to helping enjoy a night out.

This felt like her last true summer, one more hurrah and already a week had gone by with nothing. The last two had already been spent surviving, but thanks to the man on stage there was one more chance to have something truly memorable; it was too bad Momo had left for America with Toshiro to see his uncle.

The boys had their own plans, sequestering themselves in the mountains for the summer. A boys only trip to help themselves discover what it meant to be a man, it was a question that should have a pretty straight forward answer; at least to her it did.

This meant that Rangiku and her were left to their own devices for the whole summer. It wouldn’t be too bad if their boyfriends had any plans of their own. Ichigo seemed content to eat, sleep, relax and make love as often as her body would allow; something she wasn’t opposed to.

It could be a lot worse but there was a lack of excitement; days were already blending together and while he had his band she didn’t even have a job to keep her occupied.

“Stop looking so sour, you’re bringing down the mood of this place.”

In defiance of her friend’s words the crowd cheered as Ichigo and his band left the stage; there was a small wave for them and a shy smile for her.

It was usual for a small group to grow around the four, strangers seeking to share drunken stories of their glory days; or those just wanting tips. It was cute really; and Ichigo was patient with all of them, perhaps that’s what made him such a good teacher.

After a while the small group would disperse and the band would be free to go about with the rest of their night. Back before things got confusing she’d seen it countless times, even rescued them from some patrons who just wouldn’t leave them alone. She’d never seen Ichigo come away from it looking more than mildly annoyed; so there must be someone really getting to him tonight.

She was quick to her feet; weaving through the tables, chairs and patrons alike.

“No, absolutely not.”

His voice held a definitive edge and yet she could hear his friends push.

“Come on Ichigo it sounds like fun.”

“Yeah, chances like this don’t come around often.”

“What doesn’t come around often?”

She had to jump in, he was looking more and more irritated by the second. He didn’t even seem fazed by her appearance; only taking small steps to bridge the gap between them.

“Rukia!?”

The voice was one she was all too familiar with, and the sandy blonde hair there was no mistaking the girl in front of her, even if she was considerably more dressed than what Rukia was used to.

“Kiyone, what are you doing here!?”

Ichigo wasn’t going to let the poor girl answer for herself. “She’s trying to convince me to play a gig, and it’s not going to happen.”

“But Kurosaki-Kun it would mean a lot to him.”

“I’m sure it would, but I don’t think you quite grasp what you’re asking me.”

He had won the battle, his friends looked mildly ashamed for pushing him and the air was genuinely uncomfortable. One by one they took their turns apologizing, confusing the poor girl in front of them.

“What is this for anyway?” Rukia inquired.

“My old manager, his birthday is coming up.”

“And I thought a few songs from his favourite artist might make it a bit more memorable; you know he has a picture of you two at some awards show framed behind desk.”

He didn’t say anything, she just watched him kick at a loose floorboard. “Okay… but only if they can come.”

“They?” Kiyone asked.

“My band, Rukia, and I guess Rangiku too.”

**…**

“So…”

Here it came, the million dollar question.

“What’s special about that picture?”

With a sigh he lay the guitar case across the back seats, turned, and looked to the tiny woman; arms crossed wearing a mixture of confusion and concern.

“The night it was taken I told him I needed to leave, he didn’t argue with me, didn’t try to persuade me to stay. He just asked if I was certain then ripped up my contract. I always thought he let me go because he knew my heart just wasn’t in it anymore and there was no money left to make off me. Guess he just cared.”

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to play those songs again, but with you there and them with me, I stand a better chance; besides a vacation might be good for us, no more sneaking around.”

“You just made that last reason up, didn’t you.”

She could see right through him “yeah, don’t tell me you think it’s a bad idea though.”

“No, but I would’ve preferred have some time to plan.”

“What’s to plan, just bring the essentials; a toothbrush and a few changes of clothes, maybe a swimsuit.”

“So no lingerie?”

She was in front of him, biting her lip and lazily dragging a finger down his chest with that look of mischief that often accompanied these actions.

“Lingerie is definitely an essential; now get in the car so I can get you home.”

**…**

Pale skin and the summer sun never mixed; a fair enough reason to avoid any sort of beach themed activities, even here by the hotel pool and underneath a peppermint umbrella she was still slathering on an alarming amount of sunscreen.

She was tired of waiting in their room for Ichigo to come back from practice. All her manga had been read and she’d quickly learnt that daytime dramas were a good way to lose a few brain cells; didn’t stop her from watching them.

Rangiku had made good company for a while; but hearing her drone on and on about being bored had gotten old fast.

Which was why she’d decided to try sun tanning, alone.

This was truly a problem she should’ve foreseen; after all it only makes sense they would have to practice. To complicate matters Ichigo was always coming back exhausted and irritated; some vacation this was turning out to be.

Orange entered her vision and he looked as moody as ever, shoulders were slumped and there was something akin to disappointment in his eyes. She had been quick to learn to let him have the first word when he was like this; his shins had taken quite the beating that day.

His thighs were just in reach, so as she waited for him to speak her purple painted toes playfully poked at him.

“Will you quit that.”

He was sounding a bit more chipper than usual.

“Come on berry, bugging you is the only source of entertainment I have around here.”

“Sorry for the lousy vacation”

And there it was gone in a flash, its replacement wasn’t anger, just a hint of sadness in his downcast eyes; perhaps she could have chosen her words better. There were plenty of ways to draw him from a funk; the one that bought the most entertainment was to annoy him. So her feet wormed their way into his lap; toes wriggling dangerously close to his face.

Ichigo could look at her like she grew a third head as long as he wanted to, they weren’t moving. “You’re short enough to fit on this seat even with me here, do you really have to.”

“Come on carrot top there’s only so many chances I’ll have to bug you in another country; I have to take advantage of it while I can.”

“Remind me not to take you anywhere again.”

“Please you’d be bored out of your mind without me around; I’m really the only source of entertainment in your life.”

“You do know I have friends right.” He was smirking now, whatever had occupied his mind either forgotten or pushed to the side.

“Sure, but you’re always either marking or with me. You need to get out more.”

“Now that isn’t any way to treat your brother is it?”

Of all the grotesque and uncomfortable things a stranger had said to her that had to be nearing the top. 

Too far to stop the woman Rukia could only watch as a well-manicured hand tangled itself in Ichigo’s tussled mop.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

“Easy tiger, I’m just testing the waters; have to make sure there’s enough for me to hold onto.”

The woman’s pride must have been dealt a blow by Ichigo forcefully ripping her hand free; aggressively pink lips dived deep into a frown and painted on eyebrows were pushed together; her fist still clenched with strands of orange caught between her fingers.

Ichigo had protected her enough, it was time she finally returned the favour. “Don’t touch him.” The burning concrete was hardly felt as she forced herself between the two of them.

“I don’t think your brother is going to be too thrilled that you’re trying to cock block him.”

“Please, he’d have to want to fuck you first for that to happen; so why don’t you take those overblown balloons of yours and scram.”

“Listen here you little bitch I get what I want and what I want right now is him, so go play in the pool with the rest of the kids and let the adults have some alone time.”

People were starting to stare and there was even a small crowd around them; Ichigo was making moves to intervene and the blonde bitch was still there, smiling like this was a game she was somehow winning.

“Rukia let’s just mmph” 

Maybe it had been a little too much to slap a hand over his mouth; but there was no way she was leaving here without putting the obnoxious woman in her place… or maybe she could do both. As soon as she returned his ability to speak Ichigo was shocked to silence by her rough grip and the violent way she pulled him through the crowd.

“Is that it, are you running away now?”

“No!” Rukia called back “I just have better things to do with my time; like riding him till I can’t feel my fucking legs.”

**…**

Had it not been her legs that were to end up numb; those short and smooth legs, tangled up with his and the unblemished white sheets, legs that felt like they went on for forever; how had it been that his were now jelly and he could only wonder if they would regain their use within this century.

Whatever, it didn’t matter. Her head rested against his chest, rising and falling with each breath he took; those raven locks of hers a tangled mess around his fingers, the gentle aroma of lavender wafting off. A better time could not have presented itself.

“Rukia” his voice fluttered and betrayed the collected outward appearance he was struggling to maintain.

“Hmm” watching those perfect violet eyes flutter open in time with her lazy response only created more cracks in his façade.

“Tomorrow, could you come with me?”

Confusion morphed into a smile which in turn quickly became a questioning stare “of course, but I thought you wanted your practices midget free?”

She had not been all that happy to be kicked out of the practice room, he did have a few pretty legitimate reasons, for one she was a hell of a distraction. A very welcome one most of the time mind you, but still a distraction.

“The show’s coming up soon, I just want to make sure we’ve got a tight set.”

Again there was that look of confusion, the lingo probably lost on her “look I just want to make sure we have a good show, I trust you to tell me if it’s garbage okay.”

“So… you want my honest and unfiltered feedback?”

There was something he just couldn’t put his finger on, something that spelt doom for him “pretty much.”

“You should grow out your hair, I think it’d suit you” well of all the things she could say that one was a bit flattering, this could have gone much worse. “Also, could you please just rinse your plates when you put them in the sink, seriously it takes five seconds and you’re smart enough to know-”

“Okay I get it; I’ll rinse my dishes, jeez.”

“Could you also vacuum a little more; I love bunnies, but not that kind.”

“Enough already, I wanted your feedback on the show, not on me” she only snickered as his annoyance; well two could play that game. Already his arm was around her waist keeping her secure and giving him the perfect opportunity. Fingers detangled from her hair and began their affections, gently caressing her skin and tracing lovely patterns as they made their way further and further down her back.

How he wanted to keep it from her till the final strike; but she could read him like a book, he just couldn’t hide anything from her anymore.

“Ichigo Kurosaki I swear to all that is-” too late as giggles erupted from her from just the lightest graze of her side. Watching her writhe in his arm hopelessly trying to escape the ticklish torture was worth the thrashing his shins would take later.

**…**

She could see now why he had been so nervous when asking her to come, and why he hadn’t wanted to do this in the first place. There was a look of pain each time he reached for the acoustic and the songs that followed were emotionally exhausting; they weren’t obvious but when you knew what happened, it became a wonder that he had managed to play them over and over again.

Besides the sheer emotional stamina it took to listen they sounded great and for the most part looked great too. The bright yellow electric guitar Ichigo donned every now and then just didn’t sit right, and it looked as if he knew it. Every time he would throw its strap over his shoulder he would look at the hideous contraption strapped to him and grimace in disgust; his fault for not wanting to bring his own.

Practice looked to be cut short, the click of case latches cutting through the silence; then again it was only Ichigo who was packing up.

“Shouldn’t we run through the set again, I mean this is the first time we’ve actually made it through?”

“Tatsuki, I need a break. We have two more days; we can go again tomorrow but I can’t just keep playing these songs over and over again. If you want to stay and practice that’s fine, but I’m going.”

It was very likely Tatsuki and the others wanted to push back, make him stay and continue but as latches snapped back into place there was nothing; just a sombre feeling in the air.

“Come on Rukia” quiet and full of authority; strange as it was this man she walked beside wore the skin of Ichigo, but just wasn’t the man she knew; he looked so hollow.

The car ride back to the hotel was quiet like normal; but an undirected, unrestricted malice flowed from him like a waterfall.

“Ichigo, take a left.”

“But the hotel-”

“Just take the damn left Ichigo.”

White knuckles went hand over hand “good, now keep going straight till I tell you.” As expected from him there was grumbling, there was whining and there was no resistance to the instructions she gave.

**…**

Badly played solos, the same four riffs over and over again plus them stench of corroding metal; he hadn’t exactly missed guitar stores. “Why did you drag me here?”

“Because you looked miserable playing that disgusting yellow thing. I know you were miserable for other reasons but this is the one thing I can help change so get to playing berry boy.”

Rows and rows of guitars from floor to ceiling; an almost endless amount of different brands, pickups and body styles, he could be here all day and still leave with nothing. “Get a move on” the slap on his ass that came with her words sent him quickly in search of a new axe; the forwardness she had been displaying recently was nice if not a bit concerning.

Gold tops and sliver bursts, reds and blues, the infinite amount of slightly different sunbursts nothing was grabbing his attention. Most were too gaudy and the ones that weren’t lacked any sense of personality.

There had to be something he could use, this store was too big to not have at least one guitar he could use. 

His incapability to find a suitable instrument drew him to the front counter; fronted by an eccentric looking man whose green and white striped shirt reminded him of a certain shopkeeper back home.

“Let me guess, you’re not one for the impressive tops and pretty colours?” God the two of them even had the same cadence.

Giving the man a nod he reached down behind the counter “I get a few like you every now and then, players just not impressed by the standard offering. I keep a few select pieces down here for just such an occasion.”

Twin black tolex cases were placed with care atop the glass counter, “go ahead, pick your poison.” Either would have been acceptable, however Ichigo happened to be particularly drawn to the one on his right.

Finished in a matte white and highlighted by black binding along the edges. Hell, even the fretboard held contrast within it as pale streaks ran scattered along the dark wood. “I’ll take it.”

“You don’t even want to try it?”

He just shook his head at the baffled shopkeeper “no, I’ll be fine.”

Five minutes later, his wallet significantly lighter and new guitar in hand he was more than ready to leave the bustling shop. Finding the midget proved easier than expected; she happened to be the only one looking at the rather small selection of other stringed instruments.

**…**

“Maybe one day you’ll grow big enough to reach these things yourself.”

If he thought being in public would spare him he was sorely mistaken. “Damn midget” he cursed “people are going to think you’re an abusive monster.”

“Or maybe they’ll see a young woman having to defend herself from a brute of a man” she countered. “Now why don’t you put that height of yours to use and get it down for me.”

“Mind being a bit more specific.”

“The violin you fool, what else.”

“I guess you’re right, I shouldn’t expect you to be able to handle something much bigger.” Another kick to his shin was warranted, the destruction of such a fine instrument, not so much; she could get him back later.

“Going to play me anything I know?”

Sure, it was a bit nerve wracking to have him there expectantly watching her; but he had proven to handle pressure like this day after day. And if the carrot top could do it so could she.

It was just like she remembered, the acrid smell of varnish pouring off the instrument. The way the nylon strings felt under finger and the cold, eerily smooth piece of ebony resting against her chin.

A few failed attempts were blamed on a severe lack of practice over the last few years; but it was like riding a bicycle. Putting bow to string for the fourth time proved to be the trick and notes flowed freely like water down a canal.

The piece came to an end and for once Ichigo didn’t have any words for her. This was good… right? The man that always had a playful taunt up his sleeve had nothing; it was disconcerting.

When Ichigo finally did something it was only to grab the violin from her hands and frantically begin looking it over; “Ichigo what are-” “where is the damn price tag on this thing?”

“You don’t have to buy it for me” “bullshit; of course I do, did you even hear yourself?”

“What was that anyway, I’ve never heard it before; granted I never really listened to classical music but that was something else.”

Face burning bright and everywhere but him suddenly became much more interesting. “Did- did you write that?”

“You make it sound like it’s impossible for me to have any talent jackass.”

Now embarrassed it was his turn to look away, favouring the tiled floor and the dirt brown carpets that covered the majority of it.

“I’m still buying it.”

“Ichigo Kurosaki you will not waste your money on something so trivial. I’ve survived without one for long enough; I just needed to know if I still had it in me, that’s all.”

Not for a moment had it ever occurred to her that his grumbling could be something she found attractive, but as they left the shop behind the call of the shopkeeper was drowned out by Ichigo “it wouldn’t be a waste.”

**…**

In hindsight kicking her out of the hotel room wouldn’t end well for him… eh, this was going to make up for it.

**…**

“Stupid Ichigo, stupid songs” who did he think he was kicking her out like that, what was he expecting her to do, lay by the pool for the rest of the night, or till he saw fit to retrieve her. There was no way he was getting any sort of action for the rest of this trip.

There were two very minor wins at least; there were no kids around, and that blonde bimbo from the other day was nowhere to be seen.

Reclining further in her lounge chair she allowed the last vestiges of sunlight to kiss her skin and for its warm rays to soothe the fury within.

“Ichigo” she growled as the seat next to her creaked with movement “I swear if you kick me out again I’m going to shove my fist where the sun doesn’t shine.”

“Sounds like your boyfriend’s in some serious trouble”

Slowly she turned to face the woman who lay beside her. The green hair and birthmark across the ridge of her nose were odd but other than that she was a classical beauty; long legs, plump lips, and a bust that rivalled Rangiku in size. There too was a familiarity about the woman that Rukia just couldn’t place.

She was reluctant to engage with the woman, but her curiosity won out in the end. “It’s more like a lot of trouble; I’m not exactly a fan of being booted from our room so he can have a midget free environment.”

“Does he really call you that?” Some rather rude giggling was shielded from view by a polite hand covering her lips.

“Among other choice names, I just have to remind him who’s in charge” their relationship wasn’t exactly being made out to sound the healthiest; and she cared about their image, well mostly hers. That carefully cultivated manly look Ichigo cared so much about, he should be glad she was only talking to a stranger, because she was about the squash it.

“It’s not as bad as I make it seem, you’d never guess it from the scowl he shows most people but Ichigo can be sweet. It’s mostly small gestures, being supportive, and he’s always listening to me even when I think he’s not. Sure there’s a lot of teasing but it’s never to hurt. What he’s been through could break even the strongest of men and yet there’s still a smile hidden away I get to see sometimes.”

“Is that so?” It wasn’t a question, more a statement from the woman who now looked to the sky thoughtfully.

“He never wanted to talk about it, I begged him for almost two years to open up and he just wouldn’t… or couldn’t. I’m glad he could find someone to smile for.”

Words, what were they? As the woman stood and walked away Rukia could only stare. There were so many questions that needed answering, what was her name, who was she to Ichigo and why talk to her?

“Oh one more thing, don’t take it too personally. He likes to be alone while he writes.” 


	12. Lady Like

Three hours, three hours and he was going to be on stage, in front of how many people he didn’t know. Events like these maybe a hundred, two at max. The people were nothing like the bar crowd he’d grown accustom to, these were the big shots. Sure, he’d done events like this in the past but that was before he choked hard during practices.

“Keep going like that and you’re gonna wear a hole through the floor and I don’t want to know what it’s going to cost you to fix it.”

Ah yes, the unwavering support he needed right now. “You don’t exactly get how stressful this is Rukia, these people they run everything around here.”

“Are you scared, or are you just a coward?” Still fresh from the shower it was probable that the towel she was currently sporting was the only item wrapped around her, and yet she still maintained an intimidating aura. “The Ichigo I know isn’t the kind of man to back down and wouldn’t care what these people thought of him. So I suggest you pull up your big boy pants and get the hell out of here; you were supposed to be gone half an hour ago.”

Of course she was right, and of course he had to leave; and still he stood there adoring the petite woman.

“Rukia I-”

“Go on get, I can’t finish getting ready with you standing here looking at me like that.” Even after everything he’d seen and everything that they’d done he could almost feel the heat radiating from her cheeks.

“I know that look Ichigo; we celebrate after the party, not before. Now seriously get going, the others are probably freaking out.” He had to hand it to the midget, she knew how to motivate him.

**…**

Her hair had just the right amount of bounce to the curls, the black dress Kiyone so thoughtfully provided would tantalize Ichigo with its sheer neckline, hinting at what was beneath, as well as what wasn’t. Ending just above the knee with the right amount of lace; it wouldn’t be a stretch to say she looked good, equal parts elegance and sex appeal.

Snatching her little black clutch she headed out the door, and down the luxurious hotel hallway. It crossed her mind while waiting for the elevator that though it may have been less than perfect this had turned out to be just the adventure she’d been looking for. In forty-eight hours they’d be back in that two bedroom apartment waiting out the last couple of weeks but it didn’t seem like such a chore anymore.

With her taxi nowhere to be seen she was forced to retreat back to the nearly vacant lobby. A few men made suggestive looks and others were a bit more open with their attraction. Only one however mustered up the courage to approach her.

“How could a pretty little thing like you be alone on an evening such as this?”

It was a challenge to hold back the bile rising in her throat and if they were somewhere a little more private she wouldn’t have to bite her tongue. “Sorry, but I’m not interested.”

“Come on baby, you don’t even know what kind of night I can offer you.”

There was a look in the stranger’s eye that said he would not be deterred even as she kept turning down his advances and the group he was with called to their friend.

Any way out of this situation would be accepted; so as the man kept trying she lazily scanned the lobby for some sort of excuse she could use, and as another set of elevator doors opened she was given sight of a very, very good one.

“I believe your friends are growing quite anxious; and there is currently someone I would rather not have to interact with who will be joining us shortly, I suggest you make yourself scarce.”

The fake laugh from the stranger did little to mask his anger and frustration at her lack of interest. His grubby hands moved to seize her own only to be stopped by a tower of a man. For such an imposing figure in a well-made and well-tailored velvet suit; the bright pink sakura petal cuff links could perhaps humanize the wearer. However, it would have to be any other man than Byakuya Kuchiki.

“Rukia” his voice still retained the cold Kuchiki stoicism that never failed to make her feel small.

“Look buddy I don’t know who you are and why you think you can touch me but can’t you see I was here first so fuck off.”

“If you value your life you will leave my sister alone.”

It wasn’t surprising the stranger made a hasty escape, if looks could kill he would’ve been hidden somewhere in a shallow grave by now.

“Nii-Sama, w-what a surprise to see you here.”

“Stumbling over your words is unbefitting of a Kuchiki; you should know better Rukia.”

It was unsettling how quickly he was able to make her feel like some petulant child; more so it was wholly unnerving how quickly her body reacted to him. The instinctual way she changed posture to one more suited for a woman with her last name.

“What are you doing here? I don’t imagine a part time job pays well enough for you to afford a vacation like this.”

Well, he had that one right. He could lose the condescending tone and superior attitude though, instead of sitting on her ass in an office watching others work she earned every penny she had to her name, how dare he degrade that!

“If you must know, shortly I’ll be attending a party-”

“At The Rooftop?” Well that was not a surprise she wanted “I never would have thought you could’ve stooped low enough to use my name like this. Jushiro is a kind man; you should be ashamed of yourself for taking advantage of his generosity.”

“Are you honestly so full of yourself that you would think I needed to use your name to get invited?” If she had been expecting to get a reaction from him than she would’ve been disappointed; as it stood there was one card she could play that might get a rise out of him.

“I happen to be seeing someone who was invited.” “So you’re just a date then?” Again he was plain spoken and remained stoic, as if he had seen it coming, worse yet were his words; was arm candy all he thought she could be?

“If you want to put it that way then yes, I guess I’m just my boyfriend’s date; and if you’ll excuse me I believe my taxi is here.”

“We both know you’re lying Rukia.” Though he had seen her lie for what it was she still headed for the doors, or at least that was the plan.

“Don’t touch me” her voice was almost a growl and this proved to be the first crack in his armour. Whether she wanted to see it or not there was a flash of hurt in those cold eyes; but it didn’t change the fact that the hand on her wrist was keeping her captive. “No, we’ll be skipping the party and you’ll be joining me back at the manor.”

The very last thing she wanted was to be trapped within those empty walls, surrounded by servants and completely alone. Her free hand dug into the one keeping her in place and marred his faultless skin.

“Please, just let go of me.”

“I promised Hisana I would look after you; whether you want to come home or not is irrelevant, it is what’s best for you.”

The hotel doors banged against the stone column beside it, but Rukia barely registered the sound; the black helmet sailing through the air in front of her, that was hard to miss.

She stumbled forward only to have two strong arms keep her up as Byakuya moved to catch the helmet before it could collide with his face.

“What’s with people always grabbing your wrists midget?”

“Ichigo!?” While he should be at the party getting setup she was not going to complain about his sudden showing; in fact this was probably the only time she would let him get away with shirking his duties.

“I’ll assume this… character is the man you’ve been seeing” Ichigo would be weighed, measured and found wanting in her brother’s eyes; especially given his choice of outfit to a black tie affair, black boots and a matching pair of very flattering jeans, an untucked burgundy button up that was covered mostly by a leather jacket.

Ichigo was a far cry from a worthy man in her brother’s eyes; then again it’s not like she would ever find someone worthy, the only man he would ever approve of is the one he himself picked for her. “You’re lacking, boy.”

“Byakuya, right? I thought you’d be taller.” As one of the few people that could be described as close to him she had seen a few emotions flow across his face, the contempt he was showing to Ichigo… well that was new.

And for Ichigo, well this was probably the most confident she’d ever seen him; the arrogant tone and confident smile, even addressing her brother by his given name. It’s like he knew how to easily get under the skin of someone of privilege; and it looked like he greatly enjoyed it.

“You would do well to learn your place”

“Oh you don’t have to worry about that, Rukia’s pretty keen on showing me where I belong.”

It was a guess but she was able to imagine that for once the Kuchiki siblings shared the same dumbfounded expression; jaws on the floor.

With her brother’s momentary shock Ichigo acted quickly seizing the helmet from his hands “thanks for holding onto this, we’ll get out of your hair.” Gently he took her hand and led her through the doors and to a motorcycle parked at the curb.

“Surely you can’t expect me to get on that thing Ichigo; I’m not dressed appropriately and the helmet will mess up my hair.”

“Since when have you ever cared about something like your hair, besides I think that’s a good thing.” His hand gently tugged at one of her curls “this doesn’t suit you, it suits the woman your brother wants you to be; and we both know you’re not cut out for that life.”

Was she supposed to be flattered by his words, or insulted; the answer eluded her.

Sitting on the bike Ichigo’s outstretched hand offered her his jacket “you’ll need it to cover up, these things aren’t exactly dress friendly.”

“NO! Rukia I forbid you from getting on that machine with that insolent brat.”

It was a clashing of two futures as Byakuya stormed towards them; the security of money, or the freedom Ichigo provided. In the end it wasn’t hard. It was a bit breezy with her dress hiked up so high on her thighs; leaving so little to the imagination, though with Ichigo’s coat around her shoulders only the most committed would be able to spot anything.

“You better hang on, I haven’t exactly done this in a while.”

That was exactly what she needed to hear to instil confidence in him as they took off screeching down the street leaving her brother at the curb.

**…**

“So… on a scale of one to ten how dead am I?”

“Oh a ten.”

Great just what he needed before the show, for her to be mad at him; it was just hair and besides she looked better now anyways.

“How could you be so caviller; Nii-Sama isn’t the type to let that go.”

She’d looked so relieved when he showed up, why was this something she was now mad about; and where was all this formality for her brother coming from? “Do you remember what you told me on our first date when you saw him in the restaurant?”

“Why would I remember something like that?”

He could only shake his head “I guess it doesn’t matter if you remember it, because I do. Rukia I’m not going to let him take you away, I won’t let anyone take you away.”

She looked funny with hands previously combing through her hair stuck still with such a serious look upon her face “Ichigo you don’t have to worry about that I’m not going anywhere” slowly she made her way to him, arms wrapping around his chest “I l…” She seemed to question herself “I lucked out with you didn’t I.”

It was almost as if she was going to… no he had to be wrong; but… it wouldn’t be the worst thing.

At any length he needed to get out of there and see Tatsuki, with any luck it would have finally showed up.

“I need to run, are you going to be fine by yourself?”

“Of course, it’s like you think I haven’t had to do this before.”

“I figured, just wanted to be sure.”

“Are you always going to doubt me Kurosaki?”

“Eh” Ichigo responded with a shrug of his shoulders “you’re surprisingly capable, but I don’t think I’ll never not worry.”

**…**

It seemed a lifetime ago that parties like these were her norm; the eloquent language, proper posture, and tiny movements that made her look like she was gliding along the dark hardwood floor; it was all second nature to her.

Of course at a function celebrating anyone of notoriety there were plenty of people, but frustratingly there were none she knew. Granted it was more than a stretch to assume she’d know anyone at this party but it would’ve been nice. Still, it didn’t stop the many, many people from approaching her; all entranced by the supposed Kuchiki heiress, well, all except one.

“Come on sweetheart just one dance.”

The blue haired man just wouldn’t leave her alone; he was handsome, annoyingly handsome in a simple suit with the shirt unbuttoned a bit too much and tie hanging loosely around his neck. That grin he kept sporting; like an extreme version of the cocky smirk Ichigo often wore; she would take the berry over this fellow any day.

That didn’t mean he was without use, he was quite good scaring off the opportunists and those wishing to have a more private conversation with her; the kind that sent unpleasant shivers down her spine, but being able to accept a simple no would be far more useful.

“For the last time go bug someone else I’m not interested.” Her patience was wearing thin and the elegant façade she was sporting was nearing its end; soon enough anger was bound to break on through.

“Can’t do that girlie, not till I get that dance.”

“Lay off the poor girl Grimmjow, you know what’ll happen if you don’t.”

Her saviour just happened to be the green headed woman from a couple days ago; and she looked picture perfect beautiful. The dress she sported was flattering to both her long legs and ample cleavage; her face was framed perfectly by loose strands of green hair while the rest was done up in a bun with a very exquisite and what could only be a very expensive hair clip.

“Come on Nel, you think he can take me?”

Nel… Nel, why did that name sound so familiar to her?

“I still remember the last time you two fought, you were in the hospital for a week and he went out on tour; do you honestly think it’ll be any different this time?”

Great the one guy who didn’t want to talk to her because of her last name and he was just after Ichigo.

“I think I got a chance, he doesn’t look so angry anymore.”

Off on a rambling tangent Rukia was left with only one option to shut him up, speak up. “I’m sure Ichigo could still kick your ass, especially after I tell him you spent the evening harassing me. Of course that’ll be after I’m done with you, I don’t take too kindly to people interrupting my night the way you have.”

Leaning too far into her personal space Grimmjow flashed her a toothy grin “oh I like you, you have the same fire Kurosaki does; no wonder he’s with you.”

Though brief Rukia caught the conflict run across Nel’s features; just how close had she been to Ichigo? Turning to the other woman she offered her a reprieve from the testosterone filled rantings of the obsessed man.

“Perhaps we should excuses ourselves” roughly she pushed Grimmjow’s face out of her own with immense satisfaction “I’m sure we could find more stimulating conversation elsewhere.” “Yes, I think it’s best if we give him time to calm down; perhaps a drink is in order.”

Any legitimate protest Grimmjow could have fell on deaf ears; onlookers grimaced at the angry shouts and the waving of his fist; it was just a false bravado.

“Shouldn’t Ichigo be with you?”

“He’s actually supposed to be a surprise, though it would be nice to have him here.”

There was a small smile adorning Nel’s lips “he’s going to preform isn’t he.”

“Yes; I’ve been to a couple practices, they’re quite good.”

“It’s okay, you can drop the act now; even in a crowd like this it’s really just the two of us.” If it was just for a moment Rukia was thankful for the break and she could only hope it showed.

“I’ve been wondering since you first approached me; I know you from somewhere I just can’t place my finger on it.”

“Billboards, magazines, commercials, take your pick; I’ve been all over the place.”

Then it clicked “you’re Nelliel Odelschwanck, the model” “I usually just go by Nel, less of a mouthful; but you’re something of a celebrity yourself Miss Kuchiki. Hard to believe Ichigo scored a virtual princess.”

Basic etiquette dictated that you should not laugh in someone’s face; well she was barely a Kuchiki anymore so that could just go out the window. “What’s so funny?” “I’m sorry it’s just I’m wearing a borrowed dress.”

“I’m sorry but I’m not following you.”

“My brother may be rich but I am the furthest thing from, the only money I have on me is the exact amount I need for a cab back to the hotel, hell up until a month ago I lived in an apartment whose hallways smelt like piss. Ichigo didn’t land a princess; the only thing he gets from seeing me is a headache, sore shins, and myself; I’m lucky it’s enough for him.”

“Did being a rich girl become too much work for you?”

It didn’t sound like Nel was looking to pick a fight; the words could have been made in jest, and yet that sweet tone of hers could have been but an act. Instead Rukia chose to answer a question not yet asked.

“You know I’ve seen you in a show before; my brother was here on business, instead of being cooped up in a hotel room the whole time my sister decided we’d do something fun. A fashion show was not exactly what I had in mind but it made her happy; there was a live act, and you two were the only ones who stood out to me; your appearance was unlike all the other woman and his music was like nothing I’d heard before. I’ve never given it much thought but maybe I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t seen that show.”

“Fashion mean that much to you?”

“Not really” Rukia answered; her finger tracing the water marks that littered the dark wood of the bar “it was the music. Like I said it was something I hadn’t experienced before, something I discovered for myself and something I loved.”

“I was supposed to marry someone of my families choosing, I considered it for a bit but the more I thought about what it might mean the more I hated the prospect. Living with a man I didn’t love, forced to have children, not allowed to explore my interests; it sounded like hell. I know it sounds dumb but if I didn’t enjoy that music so much I might not have had the courage to run away.”

“Guess you owe that singer big time” “yeah, I guess I do” Rukia admitted with a laugh. “If you ask me though, I think you’ve paid him back tenfold.” Perplexed; she didn’t get any time to ask for clarification.

“Well now Miss Kuchiki, this is this is the first truly pleasant surprise I’ve had all evening” She could recognize that gentle voice anywhere “and considering this party is for me you can imagine how well my night has been going.” 

“Ukitake-San, always a pleasure to see you” it must have been a stroke of dumb luck that of all the people in this country Ichigo’s manager turned out to be the someone she knew. Not very well, just a fair few interactions when Byakuya had him over for dinner; but he had never been anything but kind. 

“Come now Rukia you’ve never had to be formal with me; besides any friend of my niece is a friend of mine.” “N-niece?” “Momo Hinomori, my nephew’s sister; no blood but she’s still family.”

Great just great; first her brother, than Grimmjow, and now she was going to have to watch out for Toshiro, lest she explain just what she was doing in America with one of their teachers no less.

“Sadly you just missed her; I had one of my assistants take her and Toshiro back home; I believe she was having quite the anxiety attack.” That was quite convenient if not a bit worrisome “I’ll only be here tomorrow but after that I’ll be headed home please let her know to call me if she needs anything?” Uikitake placed a gentle hand upon her shoulder “of course, It’s good to see she has friends that care so much.”

“Now, pardon my abruptness but you two are a bit of an odd match; though I guess this party has a much older crowd.”

“We both share a common interest” Nel answered for her.

“You’ll have to enlighten me; my evening has been lacking in enjoyable conversations so far.”

Yet again luck was on her side and she was spared the conversation by Kiyone appearing on the small stage in front of the partygoers

“Ladies and gentleman may I have your attention for a moment!”

**…**

Pre show jitters; they hadn’t flared up in a long long time, no way were they welcome back then and certainly they weren’t welcome now.

“Ichigo” Tatsuki’s calling broke him from the negative headspace “you’re looking a little pale, are you sure you’re good?” She was just worried about him, and yet the groan and smartass response that followed couldn’t be contained. “Thanks for the vote of confidence Tatsuki, just what I want to hear before going on stage.”

“Well excuse me for caring” sometimes he really just needed to put a foot in it; time to man up.

“Tatsuki, thank you for doing this with me, I don’t think I could do this without you, Keigo, or Mizuiro.”

There was silence between them for an awkward amount of time before she just started laughing out of nowhere. “You’re lucky Keigo wasn’t around, he be riding that for years.” Soon enough he was joining her; they surely looked crazy.

There were few times he ever truly looked at his oldest friend, most of the time she was just his friend and occasional sparring partner. Tonight she was dressed to the nines and what could possibly be the first time since high school she was in a dress

“You can drum in that thing?”

“Yeah it’s actually a lot easier when you’re not constricted by seams, who knows I might-”

“Ladies and gentleman may I have your attention for a moment!”

There was the announcement, his two other band mates rushed to join them behind the grey curtain. Sparring one more glance at his friends he uttered words he was quite too sure of “guess it’s show time.”

**…**

“If you could all have a seat for a moment there’s something special I’ve been waiting to unveil all night.”

True to her words Kiyone looked ready to burst from excitement at any moment. “So I finally get to see what’s had her so riled up all this week. Can I trust you ladies to join me; I’d rather the rest of my evening be in friendly company.”

There was no chance she was going to turn down that offer, well till she saw the table Ukitake was headed for. Facing her brother twice in one night was less than desirable; but as his eyes landed on her there was little chance to escape; especially as he pulled out the seat beside him for her.

“Byakuya you should have told me your sister would be accompanying you this evening; I’ve always enjoyed her company.”

“I would have informed you had I known, but I only learnt of her attendance an hour ago. Where is that boy you’re with, or has he already grown tired of you?” As his eyes landed on her Rukia was left to feel small under her brother’s gaze.

Another more curious set of eyes fell on her “well now this is unexpected, why haven’t I been introduced to this date of yours?”

“He had other engagements” in a rare and undignified move her brother rolled his eyes; Ukitake on the other hand looked intrigued with an eyebrow cocked in confusion “engagements more important than spending an evening with such a lovely young lady like yourself.”

Fighting back the blush that threatened to grow she instead let a smirk Ichigo would be proud of grace her lips “he’ll be joining us soon enough.”

She could offer the two confused men clarification, but the lights began to slowly dim and their attention was brought to the stage; they seemed to figure it out themselves. Her brother seemed less than impressed but Ukitake looked ecstatic as a head of orange hair pushed its way through the thick grey curtain.

“Is he supposed to be the entertainment?” Though venom seeped from her brother it did nothing to damper her spirits. Ichigo looked handsome, confident, dare she say downright sexy; but he missed his cue. Once could be nothing but three times; something was wrong, he was choking and it was beginning to show, he couldn’t just keep playing the same part over and over again.

Nel and Ukitake looked worried; her brother looked satisfied.

“Where do you think you’re going Rukia?” He asked as she rose from her seat “Nii-Sama, he needs my help.”

“No he doesn’t; if he wants to embarrass himself he can, but there’s no need for you to get up there and make a fool of yourself too.”

His famous lack of faith was starting run her a little thin. “I don’t care brother, I care about Ichigo and I want to see him succeed, maybe you should try doing the same for someone; it might make you more likeable.”

In anger he stood, chair falling to the wayside and as scary as ever, and for once she dared to stare him down; for the second time tonight he reached for her “Rukia you will not be going-” and for the second time a man with aggressively coloured hair got between “just shut yer trap will you.”

Grimmjow effortlessly batted away his hand “go on girlie, just make sure you tell Kurosaki he owes me one, and that I intend to collect.”

Tables and people blurred around her as she sprinted for the stage; and was greeted by a large hand helping her onto stage.

**…**

It wasn’t even a second thought, one moment he was watching her run towards him, the next he was on a knee pulling her up. “Ichigo I-” right now words didn’t matter, only actions did; which was probably why he readily gave into his carnal desires and crashed their lips together.

“If that’s that thanks I get I should save your butt more often.”

Was there a chance he could ask for a better time, she’d come to his rescue; violet eyes shimmering like stars in the spotlights. She was beautiful “Rukia… I l-” “you can thank me after this is all done Ichigo, right now I believe there’s people waiting for a show.”

She was right of course, it was a bit awkward having them all stare at him expectantly. “Why don’t we start with something a little different than what you had in mind” “alright” he agreed “you know the set list, what are you thinking?”

“Overseas?” So many reasons to like her, but right now taste in music was topping his list. One curt nod in agreement and he was tearing off the guitar hanging around him and replacing it with another; ripping the curtains back with enough force he nearly tore them clean off.

“Look alive” he called to the band “change of plans!” “We heard” Tatsuki called back; she was fired up in a way he hadn’t seen in a long time; she did always like a challenge.

“I’ll call out the songs as we go.” Turning back to Rukia he had to check one more time “you’re okay to do this?”

“You act like this is my first time playing to millionaires; or did you already forget who my brother is? Now stop standing around Kurosaki, we don’t have all night”

A quick count in and he was ripping into a guitar solo; Rukia’s body swayed to the beat, her hair whipping back in forth entrancing him in her spell.

_This used to be a ghost town But even the ghosts got out And the sound of the highway died There’s ashes in the swimming pool_

She sounded amazing; was there anything she wasn’t capable of?

**…**

It had all been planned out in an orderly fashion; find the nearest exit, suffer through this embarrassment for a couple of minutes, then pretend to be called away on an urgent matter. However he had not anticipated that the boy and Rukia might actually be good, enjoyable even; how was he supposed to handle this.

The confidence in her movements and singing he could barely remember the last time he saw her like this; saw her doing something she clearly loved and enjoying herself.

_Our love won’t change Our love won’t change_

The lyrics they sang together; tailor made to spit in his face.

“Byakuya” turning to his old friend he found him trying to offer comfort “Ichigo’s a good man; a little rough around the edges sometimes but in all the time I spent with him he was never one to shy away from doing the right thing”

“People can change Ukitake-San”

It was rare for someone to challenge him, but Ukitake was never one to shy away; it was why he held so much respect for the man. “No Byakuya, not him; he’ll treat her right and with respect.”

“With all due respect, I’ll be the judge of that.” 

**…**

“That was the most absurd way of ordering a drink I’ve ever seen.”

“It’s not one, it’s three” much to his amusement Rukia shook her head at his correction as one scotch, one bourbon, and one beer were placed on the stage in front of them “besides it was a lot of fun.”

“Maybe for you, don’t go throwing in songs I don’t know.”

“Eh you figured it out pretty quickly” impressed she was not “only because there’s a teleprompter with all the damn lyrics on it” “yeah but that’s what it’s there for.”

Not the answer she was looking for and the frown she was giving him only deepened as he reached for the two shot glasses in front of them. “You’re not seriously going to drink those right now are you?”

“Don’t worry I only plan on having one, you’re going to have the other; it’ll make the next part easier on the both of us; a little liquid courage.”

“You have something really dumb planned don’t you?” Sure it probably wasn’t the brightest idea to put her on the spot… more than she already was; this could truly be something though “well it could go really well, or you might not speak to me for the next month.”

“You trust me don’t you?” He asked offering the glass. “That’s a loaded question and you know it Ichigo” he did; but she still took the glass from him.

There was a desire within him to be just a bit showy; and to frustrate Rukia just a little more. Linking their arms together the height difference prevented either from taking their shot; obviously the most logical move was for him to crouch down to her size, to say she was terrifying would be an understatement; he was definitely going to hear about this later.

The fowl liquor rushed through his body, burning his throat but warming the rest with its touch. It looked to be a fairly unpleasant experience for the both of them. 

“Don’t look at me like that, it’s not my fault I was blessed with the height some people clearly lack.” Perhaps for a moment she forgot it was more than just the two of them, maybe with her small stature the liquor just affected her very quickly; but he hadn’t exactly been expecting the pain in his shin; probably why he found himself on the stage floor.

“Damn midget you’re gonna give people the wrong idea about us” “oh shut up berry boy, the only thing they’re going to see is me putting you in your place.”

The crowd laughed, Rukia laughed, hell even his band was laughing at him; was he the only one not getting the joke?

“Come on carrot top now’s not the time for sulking; get back up.”

“I did get you a surprise for tonight, don’t know if I want to give it to you now though.”

“Oh please we both know you’ll give it to me when we get back to the hotel room.”

“Well… here’s the thing, it’s not actually at the hotel” she looked puzzled; so far a good sign. Summoning both kinds of courage within he signalled for the stage hand and a case was placed in his hands.

“See I got inspired the other day” “is that why you kicked me out of our room; and here I thought you just wanted me to meet more of your exs.”

The hard plastic case clattered to the floor; eyes scanned the crowd and finally landed upon a head of green hair; at a table with Ukitake and Rukia’s brother “oh joy… I’m not drunk enough for this yet.”

“You can’t be serious?”

“I am Rukia, there’s no way I’m dealing with this sober.”

“Not that you jackass” the case was no longer at his feet, instead it was open… and in her hands “oh that” he replied sheepishly rubbing the back of his head “well ugh… it’s not broken is it?”

“No” her answer was quiet as she inspected the violin in her hands “I can’t believe you rented this, I don’t even know any of your songs.”

“Just how cheap do you think I am?” “Don’t tell me-” “it’s all yours. As for knowing my songs; there was a reason I kick you out of our room. I recorded you playing at the music store and wrote a song around your piece; I wanted it to be a surprise, I hope that’s okay.”

For a while there were only the quiet rumblings of the crowd. Usually there was some tell-tale look or gesture that could give away what she was thinking or how she was feeling, but now it was like looking at a blank canvas. Hot as it could be under stage lights and spot lights; his was a cold sweat as he stood in anticipation.

“You do know the position you’ve put me in right?” He could’ve sworn there was wetness around her eyes “I really can’t say no can I?”

“Well you could just kick me and run off stage if you really want to” it was a soft laugh, one only for him that escaped her “don’t tempt me now berry.”

“So how’s this going to work?” “Well you’ll start, I’ll come in and the band will follow me; I’ve only rehearsed this with the recording but I think it’ll work.”

“You think?” “Hey I needed to keep this a surprise” he explained “I couldn’t very well just hand you the violin and tell you it’s practice time, get your butt in gear. Want to count us in?”

“I have to do all the heavy lifting around here don’t I?” “It’s cause you’re too strong for a midget” “weak excuse berry.”

“Oh Ichigo, one more thing” tender fingers wound their way through his hair and forced his head down to her level where a pair of pink lips waited to be pressed against his own “for good luck.”

“Now one, two, three, and four.”

Bow hit string and she just kept going; unlike at the store there was no stopping, no bad notes; she was in her zone.

Full of confidence she was so beautiful; but he couldn’t admire forever, turning to the mic he took a step closer, there was a job to do, he could worship the woman later.

_I know where the nightmares sleep And from which the bottle they drink Followed one down to hell And spent some time down there myself_

_How many times have you given your love Just to find it far from enough I won’t take what you won’t offer Because I don’t even deserve that_

**…**

It took her a second hearing him sing about eyes like a field of violets and it was a done deal; he was singing about her and what she meant to him. Too many emotions went through her; what was she supposed to feel, how was she supposed to act. She hated him for doing this, for involving her in a song about herself in front of a crowd; and yet she loved him for it too.

Being beside him as he confessed everything it made her heart flutter and her hands come dangerously close to stopping. She was either going to kick his ass or cry once this was all over; maybe both, both sounded good.

**…**

Most of the crowd was on their feet; one wouldn’t be able to hear themselves think; hell maybe he’d even end up with tinnitus by the end of it.

Beside him Rukia had set her instrument back in its case, her shoulders shook, mascara was running and a hand covered her mouth. In a flash he was by her side “are you okay?” There was no way this was anger, nor could it be sadness; what had her weeping? Though it was weak she took hold of his shirt; resolve and her grip formed and he was pulled into the most desperate kiss of his life.

The crowd loved it, hell he loved it… this was the moment, he knew it; there was not a shadow of a doubt he loved her. 

“Rukia I-” there was almost no room for him to speak as they pulled away.

“Ichigo I-” was she going to say it too!?

“That was amazing you two.”

The moment that had been brewing between them was suddenly shot in the back by Ukitake; it was a struggle to remind himself that he was here for said man, someone that he greatly respected.

With regret he pulled away from the tiny woman and though he was pulled into an embrace by his old manager his arms felt empty.

“It’s good to see you again Ichigo” “you as well Ukitake-San.”

“Come now Ichigo” the older man sounded just a tiny bit cross; “how many times have I told you not to be formal with me, amongst friends I’m just Jushiro; I don’t know how many times I’ve had to tell both you and Rukia; you both should know better by now.”

The conversation he thought he was about to have was thrown out as Ukitake looked between them, perhaps understanding what he’d unintentionally ruined

“I know you like a little time to cool down after a show Ichigo so I’ll give you some breathing room but please, please don’t be a stranger.”

“Ukitake-San” Rukia called to him as he walked away “Rukia, what have I told you” “I’m sorry, Jushiro; is my brother still around?”

“I’m sorry Rukia but he’s already left, slipped out just after you finished.”

He wasn’t sure how she would react, sad was likely and yet she just didn’t look it.

“Ichigo, why don’t we mingle for a bit and then get the hell out of here; there’s a store I think we should go to.” Count his curiosity as peaked.

A Couple Hours Later

“Come on Ichigo” heels in one hand and a little black bag in the other she was scurrying across the polka dotted carpet to their room; hard to believe what they’d just bought, anticipation welled within him.

“Hold your horses, no one’s going to see; probably wouldn’t care even if they did.” “Yeah well I do so can you just move faster.” He was openly risking his shins but slowing down to a snails place had that cute pout of hers quickly reeling its head.

“Ichigo I swear to go if you don’t hurry this up I’m throwing it in the trash” then again a brisk walk was also a great idea.

When the door wouldn’t open he nearly broke the damn thing down “Ichigo, it’ll only open when you scan the key card; are you sure you didn’t have too much to drink tonight?” “I’m fine” his voice a growl filled with an unsated lust “just get in there and get naked.”

With a giggle so very out of character for her stocking bound feet carried her across their room… all the way to the bathroom. “Oh come on Rukia I’ve seen you naked like a hundred times by now, there’s no need to be shy.”

“I’m not shy carrot top!” even her yell seemed plenty playful as it came through the locked door “I just need to freshen up, find some way to occupy yourself.”

The red sheets he fell back on screamed passion; a passion he begrudgingly had to wait for.

One cheap door away and there she was, all naked and ready for the taking; he could almost feel her skin under his fingertips, the way she writhed with the simplest of touches, she was simply intoxicating to him; hell even the way she tasted was addicting.

Nothing was going to stop him once he got his hands on her; before that however he was left to try and ignore whatever idiot was knocking on the door right now. If he just left it alone maybe they’d go away “Ichigo go answer that!” Well there went that plan.

Nearly ripping to door off its hinges he hadn’t even gotten a good look at the knocker before quite loudly proclaiming “this better be fucking good.”

“You’d do best not to use that tone with me boy.”

“This prick again?” He asked the heavens.

“You said that aloud boy” “I know” Ichigo groaned “I’m hoping you’ll go away and leave us in peace.”

“I can’t do that” Byakuya could stand there and glare at him all night but it wasn’t going to have the effect he wanted it to. “This glare of yours doesn’t work for Rukia so you’re wasting your time; what do you want?”

“Five thousand dollars” “don’t you already have enough money, what do you need mine for?”

“Simpleton, I would be giving you that money. Every month I will send you a cheque for five thousand dollars, provided you keep me updated on my sister.”

“You want me to spy on Rukia; that didn’t exactly work out well for the last guy” “you’ll just have to try and be smarter about it than him now won’t you.”

“No I won’t, because I’m not going to do this” Ichigo had to be careful not to let go of the door frame, lest the man in front of him end up a bloody pulp on the ground; though what really was one more red spot of the tacky carpet.

“You want more money don’t you” the nerve, to talk down to him, to sneer at him as if this were the other way around and he were the one who sought out Byakuya.

“No amount of money you could ever offer me would get me to betray Rukia; in fact you know what I want you to do with that money? I want you to go down to go down to white bridge pike where you’ll find a store called Pleasures, go in, by the largest dildo they have and use it to go fuck yourself!”

He screamed so loud it blew the uptight man’s hair back “I see there’s no reasoning with an ape” “guess not.”

As Rukia’s brother walked away Ichigo just couldn’t resist the urge “Byakuya!” He called to the older man “you don’t want to know why I know where that store is.” With that the door was slammed shut; which it would remain hopefully for the rest of the night.

**…**

“And use it to go fuck yourself!”

It wasn’t exactly the Shakespeare he was so fond of, but right now naked and hiding in the doorway… well to Rukia those were probably the most romantic words she’d ever heard him utter.


	13. Moments

The sun still bore the heat of summer; but it was September and for Ichigo, his fellow faculty and the student’s summer was over; he could’ve done with a few more weeks. The tie around his neck felt constricting, the new pair of dress shoes were too tight for his feet and don’t even get him started on just how stiff his pants felt.

Uryu on the other hand looked as natural as ever, like summer had been a mild annoyance; surprisingly that wasn’t the strangest thing. What was strange was that they were walking together, to school; they hadn’t even done this while they were students, for fucks sakes they even got coffee together.

“I heard Riruka called you the other day” was that what this was about?

“Why Uryu I never took you for the gossiping type, is my love life just too salacious for you to resist?”

“Shut it Kurosaki, she called me in tears the other day; how she got my number I’ll never know.”

“Oh so you’re only mad that she interrupted your day to cry over me?”

“Yes, what did you even say to the poor girl; she was hysterical.”

“Look this isn’t even on me I didn’t really talk to her” the sideways glance he received told him Uryu wasn’t buying it. “I talked to her for a minute, my girlfriend was really the one who dealt with her.”

A hollow thud pierced the still air as his friend’s coffee cup crashed to the ground sending the hot brown liquid all over his new shoes “come on man, I just got these.”

“I’m sorry, girlfriend? Didn’t you just end it with another girl?”

“We worked things out and got back together” he answered with a shrug “I think the real question here is why do you care so much; seriously you were never invested before and now you care way too much, what gives?”

“I can’t just be interested?”

“Not you, no; you’ve got some ulterior motive and I’m going to figure it out.”

“Whatever helps you to sleep at night Kurosaki.”

They continued their walk, now more tense than before; sizing each other up through the corners of their eyes.

“So what did she say?”

“Who, Riruka?”

“No your girlfriend, if Riruka calls me again I’d like to know if there’s some trick to get her to hang up so I don’t feel like an ass.”

“Oh ugh…”

Two Days Ago

Well lunch was of the table now, not quite so literally; it actually fell off the counter. And while he really should be cleaning it up currently it would be quite the impossible task seeing as he was stuck against the counter with his pants around his ankles and Rukia on her knees in front of him.

She looked so satisfied as he fought hard to remain composed as her tiny fist ran up and down his length. “Come on Ichigo, there’s no need to hold back” the teasing was a bit much; but if she thought she could break his will… well she might be right; but she didn’t need to know that.

“You’re going to have to work harder than that midget” he couldn’t show her any weakness.

Lips pursed into that cute little pout of hers before growing to a confident smile. As he wondered what had crossed her mind it became impossible for him to have a coherent thought as she leisurely dragged her tongue up the length of his cock and swirling around the head.

Lips remained pressed against his cock head as she decided her next move. Slowly they parted and she took his length into her mouth; more and more only coming to a stop about halfway down.

Languidly dragging her head back and forth; it was as if she got off torturing him. This snail’s pace was going to kill him; so would Rukia if she wasn’t into a little roughness.

His fingers tangled themselves in her raven tresses, taking a firm hold of them. Those large violet eyes were wide with shock as control was taken from her. Shock transitioned to a half lidded desire, an erotic sight that could pleasantly haunt his dreams.

He worked her head back and forth at a pace not much quicker than before; taking his time and building her up to something much faster. The moans, groans and gags were like music to his ears; and for her part Rukia seemed to enjoy a little roughness.

Spittle dangled from her lips and mascara ran from the tears that welled in her eyes; yet she made no move to stop him, in fact she was more than enthusiastic about the ordeal she was going through, consistently trying to assert her dominance by fighting his hand and trying hard to take more of his length into her mouth.

The little minx was proving herself to be a talented multi-tasker with the way her tongue was currently giving the underside of his cock quite a thrashing.

She was milking him for all he was worth and cracks were beginning to form in his resolve; he was willing to just let go right then, but he also was unwilling to see an end to the fun.

It was with great sadness that he pulled her head from his member; a single strand of spit connected him to her open mouth.

“Get up” was it ever a treat when she did as he instructed; rare and beautiful like a blue moon; and it was being interrupted by his damn phone.

“Fucking hell” he cursed fumbling with the damn thing; didn’t the caller know there was a girl slowly stripping for his pleasure right now.

“Hello?” Oh god no, of all the people that it could’ve been why did it have to be her?

Time slowed to a crawl “Kurosaki-Kun are you there, Kurosaki-Kun?” His first mistake was accidently accepting the call, the second was not immediately hanging up. There was only one person this desperate.

He looked to Rukia for an answer but what he got, well was helpful for one of his problems.

A confident, sexy smile adorned her lips as she sauntered up to the counter, his swaying seductively for the short while. Parking her naked ass up on the counter she spread her legs, inviting him between them all while giving him that come-hither finger; looking at him with those big, violet, bedroom eyes.

She couldn’t be suggesting what he thought she was. It was dangerous, stupid, and downright exhilarating; oh this could end badly.

“Kurosaki-Kun?” Riruka was more desperate to garner his attention; the phone was slowly lifted to his ear “hello.”

“Kurosaki-Kun, hey” she sounded so relieved to hear him, she wouldn’t be so jovial if she could see him now; sliding his cock into Rukia’s vice like sex. With her teeth digging into his shoulder Ichigo was unsuccessful at stifling the groan that worked it’s way out of him.

“Are you alright Kurosaki-Kun” “yup” he managed through gritted teeth “just doing some house work; there’s a small leak that needs plugging. So if you don’t mind getting to the point of your call.”

Riruka could be thick as a brick sometimes but even she had to pick up on the lie; the background noise of thighs slapping together as he drove into Rukia’s soaked core was a dead giveaway.

“Oh, well I just wanted to apologize for what happened; I know it’s a bit late.” Shit, he was feeling a touch guilty for what he was currently doing. He wasn’t going to stop, but he’d feel guilty about it. “It’s just I’d start think about that bitch and I didn’t want to call you while angry.”

That was certainly the shortest guilt trip he’d ever been on.

Out of either spite or anger he pounded into Rukia harder, her arms and legs wrapped tight around him, her wanton moans had to be audible because now, now he wanted Riruka to hear.

“Kurosaki-Kun, what’s going on?”

“Oh god Ichigo, fuck me harder!” He smiled to himself as Rukia finally let herself be heard; the pain from her nails digging into his back was both sweet and satisfying.

“Hey Riruka I’m going to have to call you back, this requires more of my attention than I thought.”

“Are… are you?”

“Yes!” Rukia shouted “he’s getting laid so if you’ll kindly get off the fucking phone and let him focus.”

“Hey that was your idea” he pointed out; the line dead. “Yes, and now it’s my idea that you give me all your attention.”

Present Time

“I ugh… wasn’t paying attention; hey look… we’re almost there.”

If pushed for more than continuing this conversation could get him in boat loads of trouble. His pace quickened forcing his friend to awkwardly catch up “Ichigo, hold on will you.”

“Sorry Uryu but it’s the first day back, plenty to see, plenty to do; we’ll catch up at lunch.”

“Plenty to see” he heard his friend wonder “what the fuck is he talking about?”

Clutching the cool metal of the door handle intent on going through, but he stayed. Each and every brick of this building reminding him what a curse that summer had been. For a month there had been a semblance of freedom; looking over his shoulder consistently was kinda the opposite of that.

Above him pebbles rained down, rattling against windows and rousing him from his musings. “Oh god” he whispered; tiny black shoes stuck out over the ledge, their wearer swaying back and forth; coming close to falling but never committing “Momo.”

Coffee slipped from his hands and the door handle hit wall denting the both of them. The freshly polished floor sent him squeaking around corners and nearly had him sprawled across it. It could be quite the comical sight, especially as he tried frantically to dial Rukia.

“Ichigo” she spoke so quietly it almost didn’t register “you can’t-”

“I need you to find Orihime and send her to the roof.”

“Ichigo” she was clear with a tinge of worry “what’s wrong?”

“After that find Toshiro and keep him occupied.” He wouldn’t let her have the chance for another word. The four flights of stairs that lay in front of him were a pathway to what could be someone’s end; he took them two at a time.

Out of breath and dripping with sweat he came to the door. His hand stopped as his fingers grazed the cool knob. He hadn’t bothered to ask himself if this was something he could, or should do. But then again it’s not like there was anyone else there at the moment and Momo needed help.

Stepping onto the roof took a lot more courage than he’d thought; it also made Momo keenly aware of his presence. The poor girl looked terrified, he couldn’t blame her; on a ledge like that you’re left with one really important question.

She didn’t say anything, just turned back around. Each step across the roof was made with caution, fearing a rejection that never came.

“It’s beautiful up here isn’t it?”

“It’s… nice.”

“Momo, I need you to take a step back.”

“I can’t do that Kurosaki-Sensei; I’ve resigned myself to it.” Even beside Momo her voice was distant; there was a sadness that ran deep in her eyes. Her hair which had once been long and beautiful was now chopped short and uneven; she’d probably taken a pair of scissors to it herself.

“Are you sure? To me it looks like you’re just waiting for someone to talk you down, you’re teetering over the edge but never actually going far enough.”

“I don’t need your first year psychology bull shit” he was not off to a good start that’s for damn sure.

“Yeah, you’re probably right; that was always Orihime’s strong suit anyways. Look Momo, trust me this isn’t worth it, whatever you’re going through you can-”

“I was raped! Do you have any idea what I went through, how I feel!?”

“I don’t; do you mind if I take a seat?” Though she looked at him like he’d grown a third head she didn’t object as he sat on the ledge. The hard concrete wasn’t comfortable, but it kept him off his trembling legs.

“I get it, wanting the pain to end so badly you’d resort to this. I want you to know that while I think it’s not worth it, there’s also no shame in it. Whatever choice you make, to step down or step off I’m going to be right here.”

“But… but you’ll watch me, you know.”

“Die” it was best the consequences were said aloud “I’ve seen my fair share of death Momo; it might fuck me up for a while but you don’t deserve to die alone. You’re right I don’t know what you’ve been through but I know the choice you’re about to make, I’ve stood where you stand now; right now no matter what you shouldn’t be alone.”

“You tried too?” Her attention had turned to him and no longer was she swaying back and forth on the ledge

“Yeah… once. See that bridge off in the distance?” Her eyes followed his finger “I almost jumped from it five years ago. Six years ago, I had a wife, and a son” he explained.

“A drunk driver hit our car on the way back from visiting my family; my wife was bruised pretty badly and I got a stomach full of glass and metal. Our son…” the familiar hot sting of a fresh tears rolling down his cheeks had him faltering “for months it felt like I couldn’t wash his blood off my hands. So, one night I went for a long walk and ended up on that bridge; the only thing that stopped me from ending things was a homeless man who took the time to talk with me.”

He was grateful for whatever inspired her to take the spot beside him.

“What did he say?” “He told me that life is full of moments that challenge us, and it’s okay to give in if it’s too much. But to consider finding meaning with my pain.”

“What does that even mean?”

“I asked myself that question for years” he admitted with a smile “I thought diving into music might be the answer, but even in success I still felt lonely. I didn’t have the answer till I decided to become a teacher. It could just be wishful thinking but I feel like I can change lives; maybe I’ll stop the next drunk driver.”

“As an English lit teacher?”

“Hey give me some credit; I’m smarter than my hair suggests” he said with a laugh. “Haven’t you noticed I chose books that emphasize personal responsibility and an ownership of one’s actions.”

With hope he offered her his hand “why don’t we get down. This isn’t the place for you to make this decision; if you want, Rukia can give you my number and you can call me if you still want to go through with this. I’ll sit with you till you make your decision.”

**…**

“Toshiro you can’t go up there!” The young man just wouldn’t listen to her; seeing Momo teetering on the edge scared the hell out of her too but she trusted Ichigo to get her down; evidently, she was the only one.

“She needs me!”

“Not right now she doesn’t!” It hurt to see the look of pain on Toshiro’s face but he had to hear the truth “you’ll only make her feel guilty and that’s the opposite of what she needs.”

“You’re wrong!” He kept pushing back; and also pulling her along at the same time, there was some serious strength hidden away in him. She tried to hold him back as best she could but it just ended up with her being dragged along as he stormed through the school’s hallways.

Now nearing the roof she could only plead to him; but they were only words that fell of deaf ears.

“Toshiro you need to stop, you’ll only make things worse.” He didn’t care, the door was thrown open with such ferocity.

With the sky blue for miles she was given a clear view to the horror of watching her best friend and lover going over the edge of the school.

“ICHIGO!”

**…**

It all happened too fast, one-minute Momo was ready to take a step off, the next they were both startled by the roof door and off the ledge she went. He’d managed to grab onto her but it meant he was going along for the ride.

Time slowed to a crawl and he was blessed with one last glimpse of the woman he loved before slipping over the edge.

**…**

“Ichigo! Ichigo!” Like screaming his name would make things any better, but it was the only thing she could say. Toshiro was already crying and it would only be seconds before she was following his lead.

“Fuck” it was just a whisper on the wind but it was unmistakably Ichigo. He legs carried her faster than imageable to the edge; there they were, with one hand on a windowsill Ichigo had kept himself and Momo from death.

“Rukia!” He called to her “go get Chad; and hurry!” Below them a crowd was beginning to form; what was it with people and watching others in life and death situations.

**…**

**“** Kurosaki-Sensei you can let go of me” for a moment he let his attention drift away from the small concrete windowsill keeping them alive and to the girl he was holding onto.

“Momo I’m going to ask you this only once, do you want me to?” “No but-” “then shut up; if you don’t want to die than there’s no way in hell I’m going to let go of you, so save your breath. We’ll be fine.”

**…**

He lungs burnt but it wasn’t stopping her as she forced her way through the crowds of students at break neck speeds on her way to the gym.

“Yasutora-Sensei” she called bursting through the double doors. “Miss Kuchiki” soft spoken as ever, unknowing of the events currently transpiring “if you could wait a moment.” He turned back to his class.

“CHAD!” The lesson forgotten; surprise written across his face “Ichigo… roof” the two words made between gulps of air were enough to spur him into action. Initially the gentle giant took the lead bounding through the halls but as the adrenaline kicked in she overtook him, leading the way.

Chocolate, after dealing with these stairs for the third time that day Ichigo was going to buy her some damn chocolate; either after she was done strangling him for putting her through this, or after whatever else happened; strangling him was honestly the only option she was entertaining at the moment.

They passed through the door in a more reserved manner than the last time; thankfully so as Toshiro was bent over the ledge trying his best to help the stranded pair.

**…**

Not that he wasn’t thankful for the young man’s efforts but Toshiro was even smaller than Rukia, just by a hair but he wasn’t going to be reaching them anytime soon.

“Move please.”

God, he’d never been happier to hear that gentle baritone; and Chad had gotten him out of some pretty sticky situations. First came his friend’s head popping out over the edge. “How are you holding up?” “Oh you know can’t complain, figured I’d hang out here for a bit; get a little fresh air.”

“Had enough?” “For a lifetime; you’re going to be good getting both of us up?” Chad didn’t respond, only offered him a hand. “Yeah I know” Ichigo groaned lifting Momo “stupid question.”

Having never been rescued this way by his friend it was quite the experience being effortlessly lifted to safety; not that he’d ever care to admit it, but damn, he couldn’t recall a time he’d ever felt this safe.

Just as quick as he was on his feet he found himself with ass planted firmly on the ground; a pair of strong, dainty arms wrapped around his midsection.

“And here I thought you’d be strangling me” “don’t ruin the moment berry” Rukia whispered back to him.

If they were just dealing with the three other onlookers it would be fine, after all they were more concerned with Momo than the bearhug he was getting. But a student and teacher almost falling off the roof wasn’t something so easily ignored.

“Hate to break it to you midget, but I don’t think we’re getting that moment.”

“Just a couple more minutes.”

He would’ve warned her but “ah miss Kuchiki, I see you’re among the first to thank the heroes of today” Shunsui beat him to the punch. 

“Rukia, Momo, you girls shouldn’t be-” “now now Nanao-chan, perhaps we can let it slide for today; it has been an unusually stressful morning.”

The midget was reluctant, but quick to pull away from him, on the other hand Momo stayed attached to Chad; the gentle giant was unlikely to mind.

“Still like to play the hero I see Ichigo-Kun” “I… ugh… well.” “Oh don’t be embarrassed, I wish more people were like you and your friends; the world would be a much better place.”

Even Rukia was blushing on his behalf. “Things have been rather harrowing today; I know it doesn’t solve any problems but the least I can do is offer you all a little time to rest, you can all take the day off if you like, aside from Momo; she can take as much time as she needs.”

Who knew all he had to do to get a day off was hang precariously off the side of the school, he could’ve done that ages ago.

“Ichigo-Kun if I may ask a favour, could you see to it that these students get home safety; I would myself but someone has to attend to your homeroom.”

“Yeah… yeah I can do that.”

“Good” Shunsui seemed awfully chipper for a man who’d almost had a suicide attempt on top of his school, but it was calming in a way to see that man act so normal after such an event; perhaps that was what he was going for; that or just nothing fazed the older man.

**…**

The click of the door closing was the only sound between them, she’d been waiting for Ichigo to say something; he was probably waiting for her. Even now they were just staring at each other waiting for something.

“I think I’ve had enough stress for one day” she finally broke the silence “yeah.” Ichigo was staring at he so intently; it was just a little creepy. “Any more and I think I’d lose my hair; I bet I’d look pretty silly bald, don’t think you’d want me then, eh.”

She tried forcing a laugh but it just fell flat; Ichigo didn’t find it funny either.

He stalked towards her, such a serious look upon his face. Tenderly lifting her chin to make her look him in the eye “Rukia, I didn’t fall in love with your hair.”

Love… did he just “I meant to tell you when we were in America; but Ukitake interrupted and I kinda lost my confidence. But I almost died today and that has a way of putting things in perspective, had I fell and not told you; I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself.”

“Idiot, you wouldn’t have had to live with it for long”

“It would’ve been some of the longest seconds of my life.”

There was really only one thing she could say wasn’t there “I don’t expect you to say it back but-” “you’re an idiot Ichigo.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re an idiot if you don’t already know I love you too.”

They were already terribly close so it wasn’t much of a stretch for her to complete their confessions with a kiss.

“Hold me” she whispered against his lips “and don’t let go.” Strong, calloused hands lifted her into his arms; like she was a brand-new bride. Their bedroom was the destination but neither had anything carnal on their mind.

“As long as I draw breath, I don’t ever intend to let go of you.”


	14. Sister

There was maybe ten minutes before the alarm sounded; their legs a tangled mess of limbs that he tried to work himself out of without waking the raven-haired beauty that lay beside him. “Was I going to wake up alone?”

Nearly jumping out of his skin he looked back to find Rukia lying on her side; eyes bright and alert, intensely focused on him. “Well, I thought I could make us breakfast” “that sounds nice but…” softly she grabbed his biceps and pulled him back down beside her “I would rather have a bit more time with you.”

She snuggled up next to him with his arm as her pillow; he could get used to a cuddly Rukia. “Do you think it’ll be quiet today?” She had to know the answer to that was no; yesterday was still bound to be on everyone’s lips.

“Probably not; but hopefully it’s not as exciting as yesterday.”

**…**

All around her students were huddled tightly together in the school’s sterile while halls. It wasn’t like she was trying to listen in on their conversations, but with abundance of groups talking about Ichigo it was hard not to take notice.

Heroic was the most tossed around word, but there were a fair amount of girls, and even a few boys who were talking about how handsome he was; gross. If vomit were to rise in her throat it wouldn’t get past the bow wrapped so contrastingly around her neck.

These conversations had her doubting, wondering if this had actually been a good idea. Sure, she was getting away from their insane dad but was she could just end up living in Ichigo’s shadow. Tokyo hadn’t been perfect but at least she was recognized for her accomplishments; not for being the teacher’s sister. There was a silver lining, a challenge to separate herself from Ichigo and carve out her own path.

Of course, this would all depend on if he would let her stay, or ship her back off to their father.

Shouting echoed off the walls and though class was right in front of her it didn’t start for another five minutes and even then, she’d be standing around, waiting for another few just to be introduced to the class; there was time to kill.

Rounding the corner students were pressed together into a disorderly mob, shouting and chanting; it was a miracle no teachers had shown to handle whatever was brewing. Closer and closer she pushed through the crowd, the sounds of a fight motivating her. Stumbling to the edge she found a white-haired boy surrounded by a group of six, trying to fight them but judging by the bruises he wasn’t fairing too well.

“Aw look at that, little Shiro-Chan’s gone and got that pretty face of his all messed up.” Now that was some of the poorest teasing she’d ever seen, but it was enough to send the kid into a frenzy; just to get beaten down again. This was hardly fair, which was why someone needed to even the odds.

“Hey assholes, do you really need six people? Seems to me like you’re scared of a fair fight.” Members of the crowd looked to her; they may have agreed with her assessment, but like cowards they remained silent. “If you’re so concerned about him, why don’t you come over here and join him then.”

“Well, if no one else is going to” book bag slipped from her shoulders and fell to the ground “guess I will.” If they were surprised they hid it well.

A chorus of ooos greeted her as she stepped into the makeshift ring “look at this little Shiro-Can needs a girl to fig-” striking true her palm bashed against the bully’s chin, toppling him. With the signature Kurosaki smirk she took her stance “I do hope you’ll all last longer than him, I always hate being disappointed.”

The five who remained on their feet found the courage within themselves to charge her all at once; how brave of them.

Clearly they had no formal training; their attacks were full of openings she could exploit. Ducking under their punches she delivered blows staggeringly stronger than her tiny frame would suggest. Still, it had once again become six on one as the idiot she’d initially knocked to the ground regained his footing; and though her extensive karate training allowed her to hold her own; the odds weren’t in her favour.

Eventually luck caught up with her and a fist she hadn’t seen was to close to duck or dodge. Her eyes closed and she waited for the pain. Instead, the blow never came; her attacker was now a crumpled mess on the ground, blood dripping from his nose staining the pristine white tile.

To her right stood a girl, maybe an inch or two taller with short raven hair much like her own; and she looked fierce. Violet eyes were filled with a burning fire and brimming with determination.

Her movements could be considered beginner, but compared to the boys she looked like a professional. And though the bullies had the advantage in numbers, the two of them were able to take control of the situation with a relative ease. That was till the knives came out.

Karin was confident, but not confident to face the remaining five when each was brandishing a switchblade. Escape was next to impossible; the crowd was huddled closer together than when she’d initially broken through their ranks. The only way for her to go was backwards and into the wall.

Pressed against the cold bricks the bullies still advanced, they were just two or three feet away and that minimal gap was closing too quickly.

But maybe it was just her eyes deceiving her, over the students heads she swore there had been a head of orange hair passing by; one way to find out. “Ichi-Nii!” Her allies looked at her in shock, her adversaries laughed as they put cold steel to her neck. “You think your brother will be able to help you.”

“Yup” her answer brimming with confidence “he’ll end up just like the three of you” smirking in the face of danger; she extended her hand “Karin Kurosaki, nice to meet you.”

It would be easy to laugh at their misfortune; even the crowd surrounding them was full of pitying glances. They could’ve run but instead they chose to remain as statues as Ichigo pushed his way through the throng of students.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

“I think my brother wants a word with you” they had looked startled before, but now the one who had so confidently put a blade to her throat now was just a scared child; the others faired no better.

Ichigo’s hand encased the one holding the knife to her; she didn’t feel bad hearing the painful cracks that followed his actions. The blade clattered as it hit the tile; the others followed suit voluntarily. “I want to know what inspired you all to hold knives to the throats of fellow students; you know what don’t answer that. I can’t imagine whatever excuse rattling around in those pea brains of yours is of any merit.”

**…**

So much for his quiet day, lasting all of two hours it had been a nice dream. Now here he was leading his sister and girlfriend to his office, all because Shunsui thought he’d be more tactful. Bullshit, the man just wanted less work; even if it was only marginal.

“Alright, want to tell me why you’re here?” The question came out as his office door clicked shut. “shouldn’t we wait to have this conversation at home?” “Considering home for you is about four hours away” he pointed out “I think now is a good time.” “Dad” “what the hell did he do this time?”

Whatever it was Karin didn’t seem too keen on spilling “can’t this wait” “no, believe me when I tell you that yesterday was really stressful and I was hoping for a quiet day, which evidently I’m not getting. So please just tell me what the old man did this time.”

“I was on a date and he kinda followed us around the whole time.” Two options lay before him, act like the over protective older brother he was and lose his shit like she expected; her eyes were already screwed shut and she had pre-emptively backed away. Or, and this was a big or, he could act like a fucking adult about the whole situation.

With the way Rukia was looking at him he was sure as shit going to be regretful if he took the first option. “So” he huffed “he’s doing that to you too?”

The fear she held melted away “no matter how many times I beat him the old goat would just get back up.” Had he not told Rukia a fair number of stories about his father’s antics she might just be thinking that the Kurosaki siblings were mad, laughing hysterically over beating their own father.

“Where are you staying, and how did you manage to actually pull this off?” It took Karin a moment longer than him to calm down and answer his question “Do you know how easy it is to forge dad’s signature, it’s basically just a bunch of scribbles; as for where I’m staying, I have a hotel room for another day but…” “but you were hoping to stay with me, right?” “Yeah.”

On the sly, he studied his girlfriend. She didn’t look surprised, but then again neither was he. It was a no brainer that Karin would’ve asked; but it would be putting the both of them in quite the awkward position.

“Look, I’ll call my girlfriend at lunch and we’ll talk about it, I can’t make any promises.”

“Girlfriend?” Not only did Karin sound suspicious also disappointed “yes Karin is it so hard to believe I’m seeing someone.” “A little; what’s she like” once again his eyes trailed over to Rukia “short, feisty, demanding, sometimes annoying, and I can’t remember a time when my shins weren’t bruised.”

Rukia wasn’t exactly impressed by his assessment, Karin on the other hand look positively thrilled; even forgetting the company next to her. “So, you finally found someone to whip you into shape?” “More or less” he answered with a shrug “oh and Kuchiki, please don’t share these little details about my personal life; I know Matsumoto loves to gossip but I’ve always thought you were better than that.”

“You have nothing to worry about Kurosaki-Sensei, I’m flattered you put your trust in me.” Her voice was so high and sweet, like it had somehow been laced with actual sugar; it was so fake and annoying, and he knew that was its purpose.

“Of course I don’t, you’d be getting in trouble too” he muttered under his breath “Kurosaki-Sensei, I didn’t quite catch that” oh now she was just trying to get under his skin. “It was nothing; Kuchiki you can head back to class, Karin you too.”

“You mean we’re not in trouble?” The snort that forced its way out after his sister’s question couldn’t be contained “please you two were defending another student. I would’ve been expelled too many times over if it was something they could get you in trouble for.”

“Ichi-Nii” Karin turned back just as she and Rukia were about to leave “you can’t call me that at school Karin, I know it’s going to be hard for you to show me some respect but you have to treat me like every other teacher here.”

“Fine, Kurosaki-Sensei” it came out with such a heavy sigh, like she was doing him such a favour “do you know where Aizen-Sensei’s office is, I have to go there at lunch and go over some paperwork.”

“NO!” This overreaction was warranted in his opinion, and though Rukia was already halfway out the door, at his outburst she turned back around and closed it gently behind her. “Don’t go see him” “and why not, am I just supposed to avoid all the teachers you have a beef with.”

“No, it’s not that I don’t trust him… at all” he clarified. “Back when I started here there were some unsavoury rumors around him; that he was inappropriate with some of the girls. Everybody brushed it off because he seemed like such a nice guy.” “But?” Karin asked “but I saw him coming out of the girl’s locker room, a couple days later they found a couple cameras inside. When I brought up my concerns to several of the teachers I was laughed off, but I don’t trust him.”

“I’ll get the paperwork from him then you and Orihime can go over it together.” “Don’t you think you’re… wait, Orihime works here too?”

“Yes Karin.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“You’re not joking with me, are you?”

“How many different ways am I going to have to tell you yes, she works here and you’re going to see her at lunch that’s the end of things; Kuchiki can you make sure my sister gets to class, we’re all already ten minutes late.”

He knew his sister, which was why when she went without complaint, he couldn’t believe the silence. Then again with how loud and excitedly she was talking to Rukia; seemed she’d already developed a fondness for the midget. Must have been genetic.

One Period Later

Cold and barren is how he would describe Aizen’s office. There was nary a photo or plaque on the walls, and the desk faired no better, the only item on it was his laptop.

“Kurosaki, I must say this is a surprise; I was only expecting one of you today.”

“Good, then you won’t be disappointed. I need whatever you were going to go over with my sister.”

“Now Ichigo” he just hated the way Aizen said his name, with such an air of superiority. “You know this distrust you have of me is becoming borderline unprofessional.”

“Well then, you’ll just have to tell me when I’ve crossed the line won’t you; those papers please.”

He wasn’t going to back down and Aizen knew it; so, without furthering a pointless back and forth papers were placed in front of him. “It’s standard stuff really, I just wanted to go over future prospects with her. Your sister is very bright, and an incredibly talented soccer player. I know a few people that might help her into that field.”

Not that he would ever let Karin take his help; but he just had to push the man, he had to know “It all comes at a cost doesn’t it.”

“Well… nothing is ever free.”

The superiority was replaced by something Ichigo could only describe as sleaze; the mask Aizen wore could be enough to shield him from everyone else’s eyes, but he would always be able to see right through.

Course, that did him no good when he had no proof; and it was taking every ounce of his strength to not launch himself across the desk. He had to take the papers and leave.

“Oh Kurosaki, try not to bog down Orihime with too many of your problems, she has to deal with more than just your favourites.” It was close, but he almost allowed himself to stop in surprise at Aizen’s words; he could suspect, but he couldn’t know… could he?” 

**…**

There had been a silent rule between them, as badly as they wanted to some days they would not meet alone in his office; they were already breaking more than a few what was one more? Besides the reason was really, really good; that was what she was telling herself.

The lunch break was halfway through and neither had yet to bring up the elephant in the room. Instead, they chose to relish in the company of the other.

Head pressed to his chest the pounding heart that lie beneath soothing all worries; the finger gently twirling a lock of her hair providing another level of comfort.

“You know, I think I broke that kid’s hand.”

“You’re not that strong Ichigo; even if you did I doubt Shunusi is going to punish you. But his parents might not be too impressed; who knows they might even sue you.”

The light tone behind her words had him cracking a half smile “well if they tried anything you’d at least get to meet more of my family.”

“Why, always dragging them into your problems?”

“More like they insert themselves into them.”

“Speaking of your family, what are we going to do about Karin?”

“I don’t know” Ichigo admitted “if my dad is bugging her this much I don’t want to send her back.”

His answer was met with a light smack on the back of his head “she’s staying fool; I meant how are we going to tell her about us. As she met his gaze there was a fleeting moment that surprise crossed his face “you’re okay with her staying?”

“Yes, I wouldn’t have asked otherwise.” Still, there was a question that needed to be asked “she’s not going to say anything, is she?”

“No, she might not be too thrilled about keeping our secret but she won’t tell anyone. We’ll be alright midget” when he whispered in her ear it was always with such sincerity she believed every word he said.

“Guess this means you’ll have to give up your bedroom” he informed her, signature cocky grin playing at his lips “not like you ever actually used it though.”

“True, guess I’ll just have to shove all my clothes into our closet then” truth be told there wasn’t exactly a lot that needed to be moved; her everyday clothes had all managed to fit inside their room. She just liked watching that cocky look fall from his face “you mean there’s more?”

“Yes, and you’ll have to help me” a giggle escaped her as Ichigo’s head fell forward and he groaned into her neck. “Oh lighten up berry, it’s just the stuff you’ve bought me” that would make him happy. In more than one place apparently.

“But it’ll be you doing it alone, I have to work tonight remember.” She was such a tease.

**…**

It was obvious a few of her classmates were a bit weirded out with her around; Toshiro on the other hand, though acting aloof he had remained by her side for most of the day. But she had made it through and now exhaustion was all she felt, surviving her first day had been more taxing than expected.

And it just couldn’t be over, now she had to go to his place and meet this girlfriend of his; mean as it may be she did at least sound better than the last two she met. Needless to say, she wasn’t in a rush to get to his place.

Up ahead just happened to have the perfect excuse for her to be a bit late “Rukia!” While the older girl didn’t stop her pace slowed enough for Karin to easily catch up. “Do you mind if I walk with you for a bit?”

“Sure, I wouldn’t mind some company for a change.” There was silence between them for a little time; while Rukia may have looked fine with it Karin was sweating bullets, hanging out with only boys had really hampered her girl talk.

“Thank you for helping Toshiro by the way” “you don’t have to thank me, someone had to do something; honestly jumping into fights like that, it’s pretty standard stuff for my family.”

“Yes, I suppose it is isn’t it.” It was said quite quietly, perhaps not meant for her ears “what do you mean by that?” She’d asked it as casually as she could but it still stopped Rukia in her tracks “ugh… well you see Kurosaki-Sensei” “Ichigo, you can just call him Ichigo around me.”

“Right; you didn’t happen to hear about what happened yesterday with Ichigo?” “No” The way her brother’s name rolled off of Rukia’s lips so casually was altogether strange; he was her teacher and yet she seemed used to saying his name. Then again, she could just be reading too much into simple pronunciation.

“Ichigo, he sort of saved a student; she’s my friend, and Toshiro’s sister.” “He does like to play the hero” a smile worked its way onto Rukia’s lips “the same could be said for you too.”

To be flattered or not to be that is the question, on one hand she was being compared to her brother; on the other it was a positive one, she could let it slide. “You don’t fight so bad yourself” “thanks, my boyfriend has been showing me a few things.” “If you keep it up you and I could play hero all the time.”

It was just supposed to be a dumb joke but there seemed to be a genuine happiness that took hold in Rukia. “You know I think I would like that.”

One of the benefits of coming to live with Ichigo was the quick walk to school, taking a break from the conversation to look at where they were Karin found herself out front of Ichigo’s apartment building. Her plan to waste some time had been thrown completely out the window.

“Guess this is my stop” “what a coincidence” Rukia said pulling the building’s key from her pocket “mine too.”

This explained the candid way Ichigo talked to her, why she seemed used to saying his name; they lived in the same building, they probably ran into each other all the time. Ichigo was never professional when he didn’t have to be; the two of them probably had a more personal relationship.

“You probably run into Ichigo all the time” “everyday.” Rukia’s answer lack the more jovial tone, she seemed down now; even worried about something.

As they got into the elevator they both reached for the button with a twelve on it. “Same floor as him eh, that must suck” “it’s not so bad.” With each and every floor the worry that made its way across her face grew and grew; it was becoming harder and harder not to be suspicious of what it meant.

When the doors finally opened Rukia solemnly pulled out a key and went straight to the door that led to Ichigo’s apartment. “You’re coming right?” Karin hadn’t dared move from her spot in the elevator, this was some sort of bad dream right? Ichigo could be stupid but he was never this dumb.

It couldn’t be ignored though, no matter how much she wished Rukia just didn’t vanish. The anxiety of it all; but ultimately she had to follow Rukia inside.

Ichigo was waiting for them, head in his hands looking at them through gaps in his fingers like they were gaps in prison bars. “Ichigo” Rukia slowly spoke his name, drawing him from the self-inflicted sentence “you’re home early.”

“Yeah, well you know my last period is prep and I wanted to be here when you got home.”

“So you do have forward thinking skills, now if only you could apply them long term.” The anger she was feeling was only exacerbated by Ichigo’s refusal to look at her.

“Rukia, you go change for work, I’ll deal with this.”

As Rukia quietly retreated to the safety of what Karin could only presume was their room she wondered if it was still possible for her to respect the older girl.

“Ichigo, what the hell are you thinking!”

“Karin you need to calm down, there’s a lot that you don’t know about.”

“Why don’t you try to enlighten me as to why you find it acceptable to sleep with that sl-” “I swear if you go where I think you are I’ll put you on the first train back to dad.” He had been annoyed with her before; but this anger he was showing now; hers paled in comparison.

“You don’t get to talk about her like that, not now, not ever, and especially not in our home.” “Okay” it took a lot of strength to not sound just a little scared.

“Look, Rukia and I we were together before she was my student” it wasn’t hard to be skeptical of him “I’m going to need more than just your word to believe you.”

“That’s fair, I’m sure Rukia has some pictures on her phone, but you could always ask Tatsuki.” “She could cover for you” with an eyebrow cocked and the slightest lift at the corner of his lips he asked “do you really think she’d do that?” Well, he had her there; Tatsuki was nothing if not brutally honest.

“Why didn’t you break up when you found out, hell even I know the consequences of your actions, so you sure as shit should.”

“We did Karin, but it’s more complicated than you think.”

“Then why don’t you enlighten me.”

“No, there are somethings you don’t need to know.”

“I think this might be one of those things Ichigo” she countered.

“No Karin, it’s not my place to tell you anyway. Look I’m not asking you to like this, but if you want to stay here Karin you have to keep this to yourself.”

“You’re asking a lot of me Ichigo” “you don’t think running away from home, unexpectedly showing up and just assuming I’ll take you in is a little thing. Do you know the conversation I’m going to have with dad? He’s probably already called the police and reported you missing, I know I’m asking a lot from you, but Karin, did you even think any of this through before coming here?”

“Okay, I won’t tell anyone.”

**…**

Their bedroom held a sight that his tired eyes very much appreciated “how did it go?” Rukia’s question went right in one ear and out the other. Something about her in tights and a striped shirt that was basically a second skin, wearing a brown apron with her hair in a ponytail that poked through the hole in the back of the matching brown ball cap. He was going to be spending an awful lot on coffee if this was her uniform.

“Ichigo” there was force in the way she said his name. “Sorry, I kinda spaced out; in my defence you look good enough to eat.”

“You’re insatiable” “can you blame me?” 

“Right now, yes. Ichigo I could hear you two in here.” “Then you should know she’s not going to say anything.”

“She doesn’t sound happy” “she’s not, but she’ll keep her word.”

“Ichigo-” he cut her off by closing the distance between them and pulling her into his arms “I already told you this once today midget; but we’ll be okay, I promise.”

**AN: Just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has left a review, they really make writing a lot more fun for some reason.**


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